Sooner than Later
by amandar2012
Summary: She headed for the door, but turned around quickly to catch a last glimpse. He was still watching her, but one thing was different. He was smiling. She walked out of the house, without returning the favor. / OOC. All Human / Bad at summaries. Just Read :)
1. Chapter 1: I Knew You Were Trouble

The next song on her iPhone blasted through her white ear buds. She walked up the stairs from her bedroom, which was located in the basement of her house. She unlocked her phone to raise the volume. The song was one of her many favorites.

I Knew You Were Troubl_e_ by Taylor Swift.

She wasn't necessarily a fan of the country-pop singer, but she couldn't help that it was such a catchy song.

She made her way to the platinum-colored refrigerator. On the smooth surface were taped pictures of her and her older brother, Sebastian. Her favorite was the photograph of them playing in the sandbox at the park when she was five. Her eyes traveled to another picture towards the top. It was a picture of three teenagers, one being she and Sebastian being one of the others. The picture took place at Sebastian's birthday party a few months ago. Since Sebastian's birthday took place in the summer time, naturally it was a pool party. Clary was dressed in a bright green two piece, her hair disheveled and no makeup. Sebastian, who was on her right, was smiling excitingly in his dark blue swim trunks, dripping from previously being in the pool. She stared at the boy on the left side of the picture. His hair was a golden color, shining in the sunlight. He was smiling his gorgeous smile, displaying all his pearly whites. He had his arm around Clary's waist. She scoffed, remembering the day.

She dedicated this song to him.

She yanked open the door to the refrigerator and searched for a bottle of water. Anger rushed through her body remembering the memory.

"_How does it feel to finally be turning 18?" Clary asked her older brother when he reached the dining room table for lunch. _

"_Honestly," he sat down across from her. "Not that different at all."_

_Their mother smirked. "I told you it wouldn't feel any different." Their mother, Jocelyn, had fiery red hair and green eyes like Clary. Clary was a spitting image of her mother… just a lot shorter. _

_Sebastian glanced at her. "Mothers know all, huh?" His dark brown eyes amused. _

_Jocelyn smiled, not catching his sarcasm. "Always."_

_Clary bit into her ham and cheese sandwich. "But you're a legal adult! Something has to feel different."_

_Sebastian shook his head and drank a sip of his apple juice. "Nope. Nothing."_

"_Well, how exciting… something to not look forward to." She said lowly._

_Sebastian smiled and turned to his mother. "Jace said he was going to come over in a bit and help set up."_

"_Perfect! We need as many muscles as we can get." She said, smiling._

_Clary's stomach twisted. For as long as she could remember, Jace had been their next-door neighbor and Sebastian's best friend. Oh, did she also mention her long-time crush? _

_She knew nothing was ever going to happen though. Jace had always treated her like a little sister. They had grown up together. He would never be interested in her, not in the way she was with him. She sighed. If only…_

_She finished her meal in a timely manner, picking up her dishes and brought them to the kitchen. After getting rid of her dishes, she opened the door leading to the basement, where she resided. At the end of the stairs, she took a left and was greeted by her cat, Church. He was lazily lying on her lime green couch in the corner of the room. He meowed as she passed by him. She walked around another corner and reached a closed door. She opened it without hesitation and plopped herself on her made bed. Her pink comforter was so soft; she can lay on it all day. Her room was a plain white color with white trim. Nothing special. She had pictures covering her right wall in front of her; pictures from childhood moments, school dances, and family events. Memories she cherished. On the right side of her room was a door leading outside into the backyard. Sometimes when her or her brother wanted to sneak out, they used that exit. Her mother still doesn't know till this day. _

_She heard a sudden tap on the glass of the door. She jumped up from bed and moved the pink curtain to see his beautiful face. She smiled, unlocked the lock, and opened the door._

"_We do have a front door, you know." She commented as he walked into her room. His hair was a golden wave down to the top of his ears. He had a white wife-beater on, allowing her to admire his toned muscular arms. On his left arm, he had a black tribal tattoo down his arm to his forearm. He got it a few months ago for his eighteenth birthday. He sported tan colored cargo shorts with his regular black flip flops. He smiled his pearly whites at her. She almost fainted._

"_Yeah, I know. But I had to hide Sebastian's present somewhere and where better than his kid sister's room?"_

_She didn't even see the bag that he was holding until now. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "What did you get him?"_

_Jace made his way to Clary's closet, opening it, and placed the bag he was holding inside. He shut the door and turned to the red head. "Not saying," He said and smirked. "And you better not check either, Fray."_

_Clary crossed her arms across her chest. "Why can't you tell me?" she urged. "It can't be that fantastic…"_

"_You'll find out, eventually." He smiled at her, walked over to her bed and lay down. _

_This wasn't a big deal; he had done this a thousand times before. But as she closed the door and headed to her bed, she saw something in his face. She couldn't read it exactly, but it was something different. She shook her head, attempting to forget about it. _

_Jace placed his hands in back of his head and watched Clary walk over to the bed. She looked so beautiful to him, her curly red hair down and wild. She was wearing jean shorts and a light purple V-neck with no sleeves. He could see her white sports bra underneath her shirt. He shivered slightly and looked down at the bed, ignoring his thoughts. She was basically his kid sister. He couldn't have feelings for her. She sat in the middle of the bed, looking at him. She finally spoke, "You should probably go help set everything up upstairs…"_

_She wanted him to stay. She didn't want him going upstairs at all. She watched as he sat up on the bed. He was sitting next to her now. She smiled and pushed him. "Go before you get into big trouble."_

_He smiled at her. "Me? Getting in trouble?" He scoffed. "I think you're thinking about another person. I don't get in trouble, ever."_

_She laughed. "Bullshit!" She pushed him again, playfully. He reached over to her, tickling her. Clary laughed, uncontrollably. He knew she was ticklish from past experiences. He smiled, watching her, laughing. She spread across the bed, without realizing it, while being attacked by Jace's fingers. His fingers tickled her stomach, fiercely. He had migrated to the end of the bed, at her feet, his arms reaching over to her most ticklish spot. _

"_Jace! Stop… please… I can't…" She managed to choke out in between laughs. Jace laughed himself. "I don't think so, kid. You asked for it."_

_He was hovering over her now. Clary's eyes were closed, her arms grabbing Jace's in poor attempt to stop the attack. Clary moving around uncontrollably resulted in her shirt lifting. Jace, not realizing the sudden difference, tickled her anyways. There was an abrupt end to the tickling session. Clary's eyes were open, face blank, looking at his. He was staring back at her, his hand frozen on the side of her stomach. "Sorry," he breathed. She shook her head, slightly. _

"_It's fine." Their gaze remained intact for a few minutes._

Oh my god, what is happening? _Clary thought. But before she could say anything, Jace's lips were on hers. It was a sweet, innocent kiss. His lips felt soft and warm on hers. Her heart was racing as her arm grabbed his neck pulling him closer to her. She felt him smile against her lips. _

Call me crazy, shit, at least you calling… Feels better when you let it out, don't it girl…

_Jace's phone started ringing. They broke apart from each other; Jace reached for his phone in his back pocket and looked at the caller ID. He touched the screen and put it to his ear. _

"_Hey man," he said into the phone, slowly getting off the bed. Clary watched him, still shocked about what just happened. "Yeah, I'm still coming to help. Just give me a few minutes," He said. "Alright, bye." He touched the screen of the phone again, ending the call. He looked at her, watching him. She sat up. "Umm…"_

"_That was your brother," Jace said, looking down at the ground. Clary nodded. She figured. "I should go…"_

_Clary swung her legs over to the right side of the bed and stood up. She didn't say anything, she was too confused. Jace made his way to the door out to the backyard. "We'll talk later, okay?"_

_She nodded, silently. He nodded once, opened the door, and walked out._

She shivered at the memory. They ended up never talking about. Even better, they barely talk now. Before, they had been best friends. They told each other basically everything but now, absolutely nothing. She sighed. She never got the answer she wanted from him_… Why?_

She took a sip of her water and turned to the hallway as she heard the refrigerator door shut. She restarted the song playing.

_Once upon a time a few mistakes ago. I was in your sights, you got me alone._

The song, she thought, did Jace justice. He was complete trouble. She's ignored his presence ever since that day. Well, not that specific day… she gave him a week to explain himself, which he never did. She rolled her eyes; it was whatever.

_You found me, you found me, you found me._

She made her way to the foyer. The whole right side of the hallway was covered with full-length mirrors instead of wallpaper, like the rest of the walls seemed to be. She stopped, looking at her reflection. She was dressed in blue low-rise jeans, her black converse sneakers and a light blue flowing top that had a slight opening to her mid-back exposing her light complexion. Her hair was up in a ponytail, her curls falling down her neck. She had barely any makeup on; she was told she didn't even need it. She smiled optimistically at herself.

_I guess you didn't care, and I guess I liked that. And when I fell hard you took a step back._

She continued down the hall towards the front door. She could hear muffled voices through her ear buds, probably her mother talking to Sebastian. Her phone suddenly vibrated signaling a text message. She slide open her phone. It was from Isabelle, her best friend.

**Mall soon? I'm dying bored at home**.

Clary smiled. Isabelle Lightwood had been her best friend since 6th grade when she started middle school. They had instantly clicked then and were inseparable. Isabelle had a thing for fashion. She had the best clothes, shoes and even accessories. Clary somewhat envied it. Clary wasn't as girly as Isabelle, but she wished she had the confidence Isabelle did. Isabelle was one of those people who really didn't care what you thought about her, she was going to be happy either if you liked her or hated her. C

_Without me, without me, without me_

Whenever she and Isabelle went to the mall, it was always a "find Clary a cute, new outfit" day. Most of the time, Clary didn't care. Isabelle had impeccable taste in clothing. The dilemma happened to be her not having cash at the moment. She sighed.

**Window shopping? No $$.**

She continued walking, passing the family room. She heard the muffled voices getting louder, yet it didn't seem to bother her.

_And he's long gone when he's next to me. And I realize the blame is on me._

Her phone vibrated again. She looked down reading the text.

**Sounds good. Be there in 5.**

'_Cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in._

Clary smiled. She suddenly heard a loud voice and yanked out her ear buds. She stopped in her tracks and looked over to the living room. Sebastian was looking at her, mouth half open, sitting on the dark brown leather couch.

"Do you not hear when I talk to you?" He asked, annoyed.

She blinked at him, dumbfounded. "Huh?"

He sighed. "I was calling your name. I called it like four times."

"Oh," She said. "Sorry."

She felt another set of eyes on her. She looked to her left and saw him sitting there, watching her. He won't say anything to her, just like she won't say anything to him. If she was lucky she'd get a hello, but frankly, she didn't care. His hair grew a little since the picture on the refrigerator. His skin tone was also a bit darker due to sun exposure during the hotter months in the summer. His golden eyes watched her for a few minutes, with no expression on his face. He was dressed in a white V-neck with some blue jeans on, yet he looked like a complete angel. She shook the image out of her mind.

"What's up?" She asked looking back at Sebastian. He had a thin red hoodie on with some black cargo shorts. For being in the beginning of September, it was still a bit warm out. The temperature was being taken advantage of for the time being.

"I was trying to ask you if you wanted to go out to eat with me and Jace," he said finally. "We're going to the new restaurant that just opened up across the mall."

She glanced at Jace, fake contemplating the offer. He still had no emotion in the face, but his eyes were still set on her. "You know what, I'll pass." She smiled, apologetically. "Isabelle and I have plans."

"Why doesn't Isabelle just come too?"

"I'm not hungry." Clary replied quickly.

"Fine, whatever."

She could still feel Jace's eyes on her as she turned to walk away. God, he was annoying. Last time she checked, it wasn't so hard to talk to someone… yet she shouldn't be one to say that either. She rolled her eyes.

There was a car horn beeping an unneeded amount of time outside. She imagined it be Isabelle. She headed for the door, but turned around quickly to catch a last glimpse.

He was still watching her, but one thing was different. He was smiling.

She walked out of the house, without returning the favor.


	2. Chapter 2: One Night

"You know I never understood something," Isabelle started. She was chewing on a carrot. Clary winced in disgust. She hated carrots. "How could someone be so popular yet be such a major asshole…"

Clary followed her glance to the table behind them. She was staring at Sebastian, unfortunately. Clary winced again. "Can we at least try to refrain from talking about anything having to do with my brother?"

Isabelle's gaze fell on Clary, quizzically. Clary sighed. "He's been hanging around Jace a lot lately and it's killing me. He's been over every day and I hate being cooped up in my room."

Isabelle rolled your eyes. "So you should just talk to Jace… It'll make everything a lot easier, you know."

Clary scoffed, lifting a single French fry to her mouth. "Oh god," Isabelle breathed. Now it was Clary's turn to look at her quizzically. Before Isabelle could speak, Clary knew.

"Hey girls," Sebastian greeted, sitting down next to Clary. He made the whole table vibrate. And not too far after him was Jace and Alec, Isabelle's older brother.

Clary looked over at Isabelle quickly to see she had transferred to her normal state to goo-goo-gaga over Sebastian. Clary rolled her eyes and looked over at her brother.

"Can we help you?"

From her peripheral vision, she could see Jace sit across from her next to Isabelle, Alec mimicked his move. "Since today is the official end of the first week of school, we decided to celebrate. Party, tonight?"

Clary looked over to Isabelle, who had finally snapped out of her trance. She laughed slightly. "It's like you don't even know who we are." She smiled. "Of course we'll be there."

"Where is the party?" Clary asked, avoiding eye contact with Jace.

Alec spoke up. "I was thinking our house. What do you think, Iz?"

"I mean, I don't have a problem with it. What about mom?"

"I think she's going out tonight to her salsa dancing class."

Clary heard Jace laugh slightly. God, she loved his laugh. Isabelle shrugged. "I don't see why not then. Dad's out of town until next week."

"Perfect." Sebastian said, smiling. "So it's settled then, tonight… let's say, around 8?"

Isabelle nodded her head, apparently agreeing for everyone at the table. The three boys stood from the table and began to walk away.

"See you guys later!" Jace called to them before catching up to Alec and Sebastian. Clary looked after him, slightly surprised and with dreamy eyes. God, she hated what he did to her.

"So tonight should be fun." Isabelle commented, smiling slyly.

* * *

Isabelle brushed one last stroke on Clary's rosy cheeks and grinned. "All done!" She exclaimed, excitingly.

Clary opened her eyes, watching Isabelle prance around her room to grab the small mirror from on top of her dresser. She brought it over to Clary and waited patiently for her reaction.

Clary lifted the mirror to her face and gasped slightly. Was this really her?

"Oh my god, Isabelle…" Clary almost didn't recognize herself. The top of her eyes contained swift strokes of a mixture of black and grey eye shadow. Her usually red lashes were dark and thick making her eyes pop. Her face which was usually paler than a white wall actually had color with her light pink cheeks. Clary smiled at her friend. "I'm…"

"Beautiful." Isabelle finished for her. "Not like you aren't every other day, but… you get my drift." She spun around to walk to her closet across the room. "Now to find something to wear!"

Clary was still astonished. She rose from Isabelle's bed to the floor length mirror next to the window. Clary's fiery hair was in neat curls that Isabelle had perfect a while ago, but still wild. Clary couldn't help but stare at her emerald eyes.

"Clary!" She heard from across the room. "Aren't you listening to me?"

But before Clary could respond, she heard her cell phone start ringing. She made her way to Isabelle's bed, where her touch screen phone lay. In a swift movement, she had picked up the phone and put it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hey Clare," She recognized the voice.

She turned around to face Isabelle, who was staring at her questionably.

"Hey, Simon…" Isabelle's face dropped.

Simon Lewis was one of Clary's closest friends and Isabelle's ex-boyfriend. They had grown closer when he and Isabelle started going out in the beginning of junior year. Even though most of the time she felt like a third wheel, she hung out with them most of the time. But before summer had started, Simon broke up with Isabelle in order to go live with his grandpa in Virginia. Neither Clary nor Isabelle had heard from Simon since he had left. Isabelle had this unnatural anger towards him; mostly because he broke her heart.

If they were a cartoon, Clary would be able to see the smoke coming out of Isabelle's ears right now. But Isabelle didn't speak.

"How are you? It's been a while." She heard from the other side of the phone.

"Well that isn't my fault, you know. You cut everyone off when you left." She snapped. Maybe she had some anger built up in her too.

Simon always knew when she was angry. His voice softened. "I know and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I just had a lot of things on my plate. It's hard to explain right now." He paused for a second. "How is she?" She knew he was referring to Isabelle.

Clary took a deep breath. "Good; better than when you left, that's for sure."

"Do you think I would be able to talk to her? I didn't want to call her cell because I knew if I did, she'd ignore my call all together."

Clary realized she was staring at the ground. She looked up at Isabelle, who was now sitting on a light blue round-shaped chair. She was staring at the ground.

"I can ask, but I can't guarantee anything…" Clary said lowly into the phone.

"Thanks Clare. I know I screwed up, but I want to make things better now."

Without saying another word, she covered the phone with her hand and walked over to Isabelle. Isabelle looked up at her, blank faced. "He wants to talk to you."

Isabelle bit her lip. She had a worried expression on her face. "He wants to make things right, Iz." Clary encouraged. Isabelle shook her head. "I don't want to hear what he has to say," She stood up quickly. "He had four months to explain why he left. He had four months to make things right, and now he's finally opened his eyes and saw the light?" Isabelle rolled her eyes. "No."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Isabelle said, walking back to her closet in search for the perfect outfit for tonight. Clary sighed and put the phone back to her ear.

"I tried."

"I understand," she heard through the phone. "I had a feeling it was too late."

Clary felt a pinch of sadness for Simon. She didn't know why he left so suddenly this past summer, but she knew he still loved Isabelle. What they had was that cutesy-forever love. The kind of love Clary yearned for. She felt like she should at least try to help. "There's a party tonight at her house. Come and make things better." And without saying another word, she hung up the phone.

* * *

Jace shrugged his black V-neck on his tanned torso. He walked over to his dresser, spraying himself with cologne. He ran his fingers through his hair and walked out of his room. He legs sported dark-washed up jeans and his feet were his black and white Nikes.

He walked down the stairs of his grandma's house. "I'm going out grandma!" He called out. "Don't wait up!"

He could hear her round the corner into the hallway. "Jace Wayland, where do you think you're going?"

He turned around and smiled. "Going to Alec's. He's having a little get-together."

His grandmother had blonde hair that was so light it was practically grey. Her face had few wrinkles but her hazel eyes were full of love, as always.

Jace's parents had died in a car accident when he was seven. He didn't remember much. His grandmother took him in then without any hesitation and they had been close ever since. She was hilarious and knew how to make anyone laugh. She made the best spaghetti Jace had ever tasted and she knew Jace like the back of her hand. Needless to say, Jace depended on her a lot. He didn't know what he would do without her.

"I may be old," she began, taking a step toward him. "But I ain't stupid. No drinking if you're driving."

Jace smiled. Jace wasn't sure if his parents would ever be as understanding as his grandmother is about his partying. He didn't party much, every now and then. He was a responsible kid, but he needed to let loose once in a while.

"Got it," he said, bending down and kissing her forehead.

"Be careful, honey."

Jace smiled and nodded as he walked out of the front door of the house. He made his way to Sebastian's house next door. Sebastian was walking out of his house too.

"Hey man," he greeted him. Sebastian nodded at him.

They made their way to Sebastian's car, a black trailblazer, and revved up the engine.

"Ready to get your party on tonight?"

"Like you have no idea," Jace said, smiling. But the party wasn't what Jace was so excited about. He knew he would see her again. Maybe he would be able to make it right tonight.

* * *

He worked his way through the crowd of people in the Lightwood's backyard. The last time he was here he had been invited by one of the owners of the house, not a friend. He saw faces he recognized from school years past and many bullies he had to encounter from elementary to middle school. He found himself at the drink table near the huge rose bush in the corner of the yard. Someone must have turned on the stereo because dance music started blasting throughout the yard. The bass echoed. He recognized the song.

_We're in the spot right now. Ch-checking it out. __Packed from wall to wall it's going down no doubt._

He grabbed a red solo cup from the pile and poured fruit punch in it. He turned around to face the crowd and took a sip of his drink. He felt a sour taste travel its way down his throat. That was certainly_ not_ fruit punch. He took another sip anyways, ignoring the taste burning his mouth.

_Got girls to my left, drinks to my right. I can tell that this is gonna be one of them nights._

Finally, from across the way, he recognized a tall, slim figure he had been yearning to see. Her normally sleek black hair was twisted into curls. Her hair was parted in the middle with a small braid blending into her curls. His heart started beating a bit faster. She didn't want to see him and he didn't blame her.

_Whatever you need is on the dance floor, can't wait anymore because it don't last forever._

"Simon?" he heard from his right. He turned his gaze to the voice. "I thought that was you, man. How are you? When did you come back?"

Simon's gaze met Jace's. Jace was smiling and offering one of those handshake-hug things Simon wasn't so fond of. Simon took it politely. "Hey, I'm good. I just got back last night. How are you? Looks like nothing has changed since I've left,"

Jace shook his head. "Yeah, nothing really has changed. Same old, same old." He hesitated for a second. "Has Iz seen you yet?"

Simon shook his head. "She won't talk to me, at all. I had called Clary earlier because I knew Isabelle wouldn't pick up my call if I had called her myself but… It's cool. I fucked up." He shrugged.

_So turn up that spotlight, Gonna tear it up like we got one night._

Jace's heart started racing at the sound of her name. He hadn't seen her yet, but he knew she was here. He had seen Isabelle, but still no sign of Clary. He took a sip of his can of beer.

"I know the feeling. Give it time, you know?"

Simon nodded and took a sip of his drink. He looked out into the crowd. A few people were dancing now, other stood around talking. He looked to the place where he had last spot Isabelle. She was gone. Fuck. Jace patted Simon's left shoulder and made his way through the crowd to find the red-headed he was searching for.

_'Cause tomorrow morning we'll be leaving, so right now you better jump right in._

Simon took another sip of his drink and went the opposite direction of Jace hoping to find Isabelle somewhere. As if his wish had been fulfilled, he bumped into a tall, gorgeous girl.

"Oh, I am so –" She stopped short when she turned to see him. "Are you fucking kidding me?" She rolled her eyes, stomping away. Simon could tell she was a bit tipsy. He followed her, calling her name. She simply ignored him, walking into her house. He hesitated a second once he saw her open the sliding glass door into the house. He shook his head and followed her in.

_So let's keep it rocking 'til daylight. Gotta live like we got one night, one night, one night._

Clary sipped her cup before realizing she was alone. Isabelle had gone to go get another drink fifteen minutes ago. She probably got too caught up with talking to someone and forgot about her. She shrugged. It didn't bother her. She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned around.

"Hey," he said, smiling. She stared, shocked. His black shirt made him look darker than he really. She could see the black tribal tattoo on his upper arm as he lifted the drink to his perfect lips. She felt herself swooning a bit.

_Gotta live like we got one night, one night, one night._

"How are you?"

She looked back to his golden eyes. "Hi," she said with no emotion in her face. She had to stop swooning. She had to remember what he did to her. She had to remember why she had been angry at him for all these months.

_'Cause you know we just got one life, one life, one life._

"I'm fine." She said quickly, avoiding his eyes. She heard him sigh as she looked to the crowd in back of him.

"Clary, can we talk?" She heard him plea.

She looked at him. "We're talking now."

_So gotta live like we got one night, one night, one night._

Jace sighed, taking her hand and walking to the side of the house, where they were alone and the music was dim.

"What are you doing? Let go of me!" She yanked her hand from his grip and looked at him, quizzically, waiting for his response. He looked at her, really looked at her.

_God, she's so beautiful_, he thought.

She had makeup on tonight, which he wasn't used to, but either way, she looked good. She was dressed in a regular white tee and a pink and orange floral skirt that flowed from under her bust line. She had white strap sandals on that had little flowers in the back of them. She looked a bit more feminine than normal… he kind of liked it.

"So?" she demanded again. "Why am I over here?" She had crossed her arms across her chest now with one of her hands were occupied by a red cup. She was angry, he knew. He didn't blame her.

"I need to talk to you." he said, looking down at her deep, green eyes. He heard her sigh. She leaned against the side of the house.

"Okay, what?"

"I wanted to talk to you about that day… In the summer…" He hesitated as he watched her facial expression change. He couldn't exactly read what it was. "I wanted to apologize. I know it was wrong to leave you hanging like that, but…" He stopped. He was looking into her eyes. He saw so much hurt. "But I was confused. I just... I didn't…"

Clary broke their eye contact and nodded. "I got to go."

"No, Clary, please." Jace grabbed her arm before she could get away. She turned back to him. He saw so much sadness. He couldn't believe he did this to her. "Please, don't go."

"No, Jace… I can't do this. I thought I could but – I can't accept your apology when I don't know how you feel about what happened. Or why you even did it, for that matter." She shook her head and retrieved her hand from his. "Bye, Jace."

And with that, she walked back to the party.

* * *

"Isabelle, will you please talk to me?" Simon raced down the hall after her. He forgot she was such a fast walker. Yeah… walker. Simon attempted to catch his breath as he rounded the corner of the hall way. They were upstairs of the house, which was off-limits to the guests. Simon knew from memory that she was heading to her room. He saw her turned into her room, but before she could close the door in his face, he stopped it with his hand. "Iz, please?" He took a breath in. "Just give me ten minutes, that's all I ask for."

He watched her facial expression change into the thinking face she always used to make. He missed that face. He missed the how when she didn't get her way, she'd huff and puff around her room until Simon eventually gave in. He missed her innocent smile that he had fallen in love with. He missed her, period.

He heard her sigh and agree to the terms. She opened the door enough for him to step through. Simon walked in and looked around him. Not much had change since he had last been in her room. He smiled slightly, remembering the memories in this room.

"You have ten minutes starting now." He heard her say from behind him. He turned and watched her close the door and walk to her bed. She sat down silently and looked at him.

He walked closer to her bed but didn't dare cross the line of sitting on it. He knew that she'd take it the wrong way.

"I'm sorry I left so abruptly before summer started." He started. "I have my reasons. Reasons I want to share with you. But I need you to really be willing to listen to me, not that thing you do when you act like you're listening but you're really in la la land."

Isabelle smiled a bit. "Fine, I'll listen."

Simon took a deep breath in. "I told you before I broke it off why I was leaving and I wasn't lying. I had to go stay with my grandparents for a while, but it wasn't because of them."

He watched as Isabelle tucked a few strands of dark hair behind her ear. "I wasn't visiting for the summer, like I had told you." He watched her bite her bottom lip, lightly. "It was my dad, Isabelle. I went to go see my dad."

She looked at him, her face blank. "But, you – He left so long ago – why?"

Simon nodded his head. "Yeah, but he's sick –" He looked down to the ground. "- was sick."

Her breath caught. She got up quickly from the bed and to his side. She hugged him without any hesitation. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her face buried into his neck. Stiff at first, he warmed up to the hug and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I'm so sorry, Si." She mumbled into his neck. "I didn't know…" She backed away a bit to see his face, but didn't break the hug. She looked into his dark eyes through his glasses. God, she could melt into those eyes.

"How could you have known? I didn't tell anyone." He shrugged. "I'm fine. I mean, I didn't know the guy that well. But I knew I had to be there. I wanted to spend some kind of time with him, you know?"

She nodded but didn't break their stare. A strand of hair fell into her face, covering her left eye. "I'm sorry." She whispered. She didn't know what else to say. She didn't want to push the subject and make him uncomfortable. He lifted his hand to her face, his thumb brushing on the side of her cheek, and tucked the strand of dark hair in back of her ear. She loved when he did that.

"But it's still no excuse to have broken it off with you and I'm sorry for that." He paused. He slowly bent down toward her face. "I didn't mean to break your heart. It's still no excuse."

Her lips opened slightly, but she didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say. She just wanted to continue hearing him talk. "But I do still have feelings for you, Iz." He said, lowly. Her heart started fluttering, her stomach doing backflips. She could possibly have fainted, but she kept her composure. "I still love you."

She didn't need to hear anything else. She closed the space between them, her lips meeting his. It felt so natural, so right. It was the type of kiss that meant nothing had changed between them. She still loved him too. His lips were so soft and she loved how he pulled her closer to him as if trying to make them one person.

There was a knock at the door, but they both ignored it. They were too consumed in this kiss. Her hands were rung around his neck pulling him closer to her. She licked his bottom lip and he granted her entrance without any hesitation.

"Hello? Iz, are you in there?" She froze and broke apart from Simon. He looked so confused, but so did she because it was Sebastian's voice behind the door.


	3. Chapter 3: Kiss Me

**A/N:** Okay, here's the deal guys. I love writing for you guys, but I haven't been getting much feedback or reviews and those really motivate me to write. If I could get a bunch of reviews for this chapter it would be great and put a huge smile on my face! Haha, but I must warn you now, I won't be updating until I get some reviews! This is a short chapter, but I felt like I owed you some Jace/Clary time. Hope you guys enjoy :)

* * *

Clary closed the door shut behind her quietly and started stripping off her clothes. She was in her room now, away from the party, away from the madness of this night. She kicked her skirt off her ankles and went to the dresser and rummaged through her drawer looking for her pajama shorts. She couldn't help but think back to earlier and how genuinely sorry Jace's face looked. She shook the image out of her mind as she picked out shorts out of the drawer and pulled them on. They were hot pink shorts with a bow on them. She lifted her shirt over her shoulders and threw it next to where her skirt lied on the ground. She walked over to her alarm clock was, placed her phone on the charging deck and pressed play. A soft tune started playing through the small speakers.

_Settle down with me. Cover me up. Cuddle me in._

She walked back over to her dresser, opening the top drawer and taking out a white tank top. As she closed the drawer, she heard the back door behind her open. Her first instinct was to cover herself with her tank top. She turned around quickly to see who it was.

She watched as Jace walked through the door, almost tripping on a shoe. She chuckled lightly. He looked up at her and froze.

_Lie down with me and hold me in your arms._

She looked down at herself remembering she was only in her bra. She blushed a bit, turned around, and shrugged the tank top on. She heard the door close with a loud thump. She prayed that neither her mother nor Sebastian heard it. She had a feeling Jace was a little drunk. And she almost didn't want to deal with it.

She turned around the face him. His eyes were a dim gold color and she watched as he came closer to her, sitting on her bed. Her lips parted slightly, confused to why he was even here.

_And your heart's against my chest, your lips pressed to my neck._

"Why are you here?" She asked, lowly. He looked at her, confused. Maybe he didn't know himself why he was here. She sat down on the bed, facing him. "Jace, are you alright?"

He nodded and looked down at the ground. "I can't go home like this." He managed to slur out. Clary got up, walking to mini fridge. She bent down, opening the door and grabbed out a water bottle. She walked back to the bed, handing Jace the bottle. "Here," she said. "You'll need this."

He took the bottle from her hand, smiling. "Thanks, Clare bear."

She stared at him. He hadn't called her that since they were kids. Her heart started racing faster.

_I'm falling for your eyes, but they don't know me yet._

"I'm sorry that I came here but – I couldn't think of anywhere else to go." Jace said, snapping the cap of the bottle open. He lost the balance of the bottle resulting in water spilling all over his shirt. Clary laughed. He looked up and smiled at her. "Not funny." He said, taking a sip out of the bottle. Clary smirked.

"You can stay here if you want." She offered. She pointed to the door behind her, which led to own personal living room. "You have to sleep on the couch though."

Jace nodded. "Obviously."

_And with this feeling I'll forget, I'm in love now._

Jace looked into Clary's emerald eyes. He wasn't sure what he saw. They locked eyes for a few moments before Clary's gaze fell on Jace's shirt. "Oh, your shirt is wet."

Jace nodded but didn't say anything. He took another sip from the bottle in his hands. Clary got up quickly and started rummaging through her dresser.

"What are you doing?" Jace asked, but got no reply. He slowly began taking off his jacket as Clary threw him an old New York Giants t-shirt. He smiled slightly. It was his t-shirt. He had given it to her after a game they went to last year. She had dropped her hotdog on her shirt getting the works all over her. He had taken off his own t-shirt to let her wear it. "I remember this shirt." He slurred.

_Kiss me like you wanna be loved, you wanna be loved._

Clary nodded, smiling. "I figured you would. I forgot I had it until now."

Jace placed his water on the bedside table next to him and lifted his wet V-neck over him. Clary couldn't help but watch. She admired the way his muscles flexed while he threw the previous shirt on the ground next to her closet. She stared at his tattoo and how it wrapped around his bicep. Jace shrugged the t-shirt over his tanned body and sighed. "Thanks,"

"No problem."

Jace, although not sober, could feel the tension in the room. He wasn't sure why he had come to Clary rather than anyone else. He just felt a pull toward her.

Since their talk earlier, it seemed that Jace drank any can of beer he could get ahold of. Eventually, it all caught up to him and he realized slowly he couldn't go back to his grandmother's like this. She would have a heart attack. He didn't want to be responsible for that. So he got a ride back home with Sebastian, and once he knew Sebastian was in the house, he took a run for it for the backyard. There he knew Clary's door would be open and he could possibly sleep there. Jace hadn't been sure if Clary would let him in after what had happened earlier that night, but he was willing to take the chance and find out. Looks like fate hadn't failed him.

_You wanna be loved, this feels like falling in love._

He heard Clary yawned and he looked at her. He could see her eyes slightly drooping. The alcohol must have finally caught up to her. He knew Clary didn't drink much, not as much as her friend Isabelle, that's for sure. She only drank to make herself feel good, not to get completely trashed. He liked that about her.

"Jace?"

"Mm?"

"I'm sorry about earlier."

He heard sadness in her voice…again. She was looking at him now, her eyes fully alert. She was fidgeting with her hands in her lap. Jace looked down and his eyes caught a glimpse of her bare skin; her legs. He felt his face getting hot.

"I should have finished hearing what you had to say but," she shrugged. "I wasn't sure if I was able to, you know? It hurt just hearing you talk about it."

_Falling in love, we're falling in love._

He looked back up to her face. Her makeup wasn't as perfect as before, but still in place. Her perfect lips had a rose tint to them. Jace had the sudden urge to kiss her, but stopped himself. The whole reason he was in this boat in the first place was because he kissed her and didn't explain himself afterwards.

"I'm sorry, Clary." He said, taking her hands from her lap. "I really am. I didn't mean to hurt you earlier and before that."

_Settle down with me. And I'll be your safety, you'll be my lady._

She nodded. "I know that now." She smiled a bit. "I'm getting a little tired now. I think I'm going to go to bed." She got up from the bed and walked over to her closet. She opened it, reaching for the top shelf and retrieving a dark purple blanket. She turned back to Jace, who was now standing with water bottle in hand.

_I was made to keep your body warm. But I'm cold as the wind blows so hold me in your arms._

Jace followed her through the door and to the large black sofa, opposite her bedroom door.

"Make yourself at home." She said, smiling. She handed him the blanket in her hands. He took it and placed it on the couch. "Thanks Clare Bear." He said, walking closer to her.

Her heart began to flutter again. There was something about him calling her that that wanted made her want to melt in his arms. His ruff hands made contact with her shoulders and slid down until his hands met with her's.

"Nothing that has happened was on accident," He said, pulling her closer to him until there was no space between them. "I hope you know that."

She stared at him, surprised. She was speechless. She looked into his golden eyes that were looking back into her emerald ones. The dimness she saw before was not there anymore, but a bright, fiery molten gold color that she absolutely loved. She shook her head, slowly.

"You're drunk, Jace." She made her way out of his gasp. "Go to bed."

He held on to his grasp, protesting her escape. She still happened to wiggle her thin arms out of his hands and made her way to her bedroom. "That doesn't change anything though." He said, following her to the room. She took a step into the room, until Jace caught up with her. She turned around and looked at his face. She could see his muscular jaw set and his eyes on her.

"It changes everything," She said, looking down at his left hand holding her arm. "You won't remember a thing tomorrow – and I will."

"The fact that I'm drunk doesn't change –"

"It does, please just stop –"

"Let me finish what I was saying, Fray."

She looked down at the ground, not wanting to meet his eyes. His right hand grazed up her arm, making its way to her face. He lifted her chin to meet his gaze. "The fact that I'm drunk doesn't change the fact that I've wanted to kiss you again for months now."

Clary's breath caught.

"It doesn't change the fact that you're all I could be able to think about ever since we first kiss three months ago." His thumb brushed against her cheek and his other hand brought her closer to him. "And it also doesn't change that I feel something for you, Clary."

She couldn't say anything. Nothing came out of her mouth. She tried, but it was no use.

Jace bent his head, pausing for second before their lips touched lightly. It was a soft innocent kiss. A kiss two thirteen year olds would have. Short and sweet, yet romantic. He pulled away and looked at her, smiling.

"Goodnight, Fray."

And with that, he turned away from her, out of her bedroom and closed the door.


	4. Chapter 4: A Drop in the Ocean

**A/N:** Thanks for all the reviews guys! I love all your feedback and thoughts. Make sure you review this one as well and I promise to update as soon as I can!

xoxo

* * *

Jace's eyes fluttered open slowly. The light peering through the curtains blinded him. His head started throbbing. He quickly covered his face with the soft blanket, blocking any source of light. He opened his eyes to look at the blanket covering his face. It was purple. He didn't own a purple blanket last time he checked. Where was he?

_God, please let me not be in some random chick's house_, he internally begged.

He glanced down at himself. He wasn't naked, that was a good sign. But he wasn't wearing the shirt he had remembered putting on the night before. He was wearing his old New York Giants t-shirt. It was the shirt he had given Clary to wear when they had went to the game together months ago.

Wait.

Clary.

He uncovered himself quickly, ignoring his better judgment of staying under. He looked around him to find himself in Clary's basement. He must have slept on her couch because that is where he was lying. The light from the window made his head hurt more. He sat up, staring at Clary's door across the way from him. He couldn't avoid her again. But he wasn't sure what even happened last night. He shook his head slowly and immediately regretting it afterwards.

How did he even get to Clary's after the party? What was going on?

He didn't hear anything coming from her room, but she was most likely in there. He got up slowly, scared he would become too dizzy quickly. He looked back at the couch. He folded the purple blanket, which gave him a good reason to go in her room to talk to her. He walked over to her door and hesitated. He reached for the door knob slowly and stopped.

What if something happened last night that he didn't remember? What if…

And as if a light bulb had flickered on in his head… He was in this exact spot last night.

_"You're drunk, Jace. Go to bed."_

_"That doesn't change anything though." He said. She took a step into the room, until Jace caught up with her. She turned around and looked at his face._

_"It changes everything. You won't remember a thing tomorrow – and I will."_

_"The fact that I'm drunk doesn't change –"_

_"It does, please just stop –"_

_"Let me finish what I was saying, Fray."_

_He took a deep breath in. "The fact that I'm drunk doesn't change the fact that I've wanted to kiss you again for months now. It doesn't change the fact that you're all I could be able to think about ever since we first kiss three months ago. And it also doesn't change that I feel something for you, Clary."_

He blinked. He kissed her last night. Again. He mentally scolded himself.

Instead of turning the doorknob, he lifted his hand and knocked instead. He heard nothing from the other side of the door. His brows furrowed together, confused. He knocked again. Still nothing. His hand reached for the doorknob and turned it, opening the door. Her bed was made neatly but Clary was nowhere in sight. In the corner of the room laid his shirt he wore last night. He walked over to it, picking it up off the floor and glanced at Clary's alarm clock near her bed. 12: 34 P.M. There goes his morning. No wonder Clary wasn't around. He placed the blanket on her bed neatly, put his shoes on and left out the door.

* * *

Clary sipped from her straw and looked up at her best friend. Isabelle was staring out into space with a stupid smile on her face. Clary was obviously missing something.

The girls were at the mall in the food court, eating their lunch. Isabelle had called her up telling her she had to tell her the rest of her eventful night, yet Clary hadn't heard it since they got to the mall.

"So," Clary started. "What's this thing you have to tell me? What happened last night?"

Isabelle looked at her friend, surprised at the question. "Oh!" She exclaimed. She smiled and lowered her head to whisper. "Simon and I made up last night after he explain everything to me and guess who walks in on us!" She leaned back into her chair waiting for Clary's answer. Clary pondered for a minute before her eyes grew wide.

"Your mom?" She exclaimed.

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "God no," she picked up a French fry from her tray. "Guess again."

She thought carefully before coming to realization. "Oh my god, Sebastian?"

Isabelle nodded her head, biting into the fry. Clary's mouth dropped slightly, urging her to continue the story. Isabelle cleaned her hands and sighed. "Well, Simon had just finished telling me about his dad –"

"Wait, his dad? What about his dad?"

"I'll tell you that after, let me finish." Isabelle snapped. "And I felt really sympathetic so I went to go hug him. The hug lingered a little longer than I expected and then we had that eye contact and ugh," She smiled. "He told me he still loved me and we kissed." Her hands were covering her heart now. "So romantic. But while we were in the midst of our kiss, Sebastian decided to knock on my door and ruin everything!" She became irritated now. "He knocked first and I didn't do anything because I thought it was Alec or whatever. Then he knocked again and he spoke, which made me freak out and then Simon got confused. Then Sebastian opened the door and he looked shocked, then confused and oh my god." She buried her face into her hands. "It was like an episode of a soap opera."

Clary busted out laughing. "What on earth, you've got to be kidding me! It's like your own fantasy happening in real life."

Isabelle scoffed, crossing her arms across her chest. "Not funny, Clary. I had no idea what to do! It was a nightmare, not a fantasy!"

"Oh, you're being so dramatic, Iz" Clary took a sip of her soda. "I had an eventful night as well."

Isabelle's eyes brighten to the news. "Do tell!"

Clary sighed lightly. "Jace came over last night after the party and was hammered. I didn't know what to do with him. He kept saying he couldn't go home like this, so I let him stay the night."

Isabelle smirked. "Did you guys have sex?"

"Oh my god, Isabelle! No!" Clary blushed. "God, no. He slept on the couch, but he kissed me, yet again, and then was rambling on and on about how he hasn't stopped thinking about me since we first kissed. I was more shocked than anything, and then I remembered he was drunk and will completely forget about everything in the morning. So I've decided that I'm going to act like nothing happened last night because I'm not going to put myself through that kind of emotional damage again."

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "You acting like it didn't happen is giving you emotional damage itself, you idiot." She sighed. "You know, sometimes I think I'm the smart friend."

Clary now rolled her eyes and stole one of Isabelle's French fries, stuffing it in her mouth quickly.

"Oh and speaking of the devil…" Isabelle said lowly. She was looking past Clary, with a plastered smile on her face. "Hey guys!"

Clary's heart started racing as Isabelle got up from her chair and greeted someone behind Clary. She didn't dare turn behind her.

"Hey," she heard a familiar voice. Simon. Oh, thank god. She finally turned back to her friends and suddenly regretted it when she saw who else Simon was with.

Jace wasn't looking at Clary, but at the couple embracing in front of them. Her glance fell to Isabelle and Simon hugging and smiling at each other. Clary almost wanted to gag because it was so cute.

"Oh hey, Clary" Simon greeted her, smiling. Isabelle grabbed his hand and took him to the chair she was once seated on and placed him in the chair next to it. Clary waved slightly to him and watched as Jace sat in the chair next to her. He was looking at her now, smiling.

"Hey," he said, reaching over and grabbing one of Isabelle's French fries. Clary smiled up at him, politely. Did he even remember what happened last night? So many things were running through her mind. She didn't know if she should mention anything. No. She couldn't put herself through this again. _Act normal_, she reminded herself.

"… We didn't even know you guys were here." Simon was saying loudly, breaking Clary's thoughts. She looked up at Simon, who was taking a sip of Isabelle's drink.

"Let's do something guys." Clary piped in.

All three pairs of eyes looked at her. Isabelle's face lit up and she grinned. "Clary, that's a great idea!"

"What do you have in mind?" Simon inquired.

Clary shrugged. "How about going to the city?"

"I haven't been there in forever! Can we go?" Isabelle looked to Simon with puppy-dog eyes. Simon laughed and nodded. He turned to Jace. "You in?"

Clary looked to Jace, somewhat hopeful he'd say yes. Jace shrugged slightly and then grinned. "Why not?"

Clary's heart started fluttering when he turned to flash his smile at her. This time she smiled back, but it wasn't forced like before. She meant it.

* * *

The four kids decided to drive in one car instead of two; something about less gas being used and saving the environment, according to Simon. Clary had rolled her eyes to his comment, but knew deep down that's just how Simon was.

Jace still hadn't said a word to the petite red-head since they had left for their road trip. Unfortunately, they were both sitting next to each other in Simon's beat up Honda that was way too small for comfort. Clary had been looking out the window for a while now, watching the trees pass by quickly as the car sped up. She heard the music in the back ground from the car stereo. She knew this was one of Isabelle's favorite songs.

_A drop in the ocean, a change in the weather. _

_I was praying that you and me might end up together._

She glanced up at the fluffy clouds and how the sun tried peeking through them. She smiled. She could feel the warm essence of the sun beaming through the window of the car. She heard Isabelle start humming the song from in front of her.

_It's like wishing for rain as I stand in the desert._

_But I'm holding you closer than most 'cause you are my heaven._

She felt Jace shift next to her. She didn't dare look. She didn't want to have awkward eye contact. She wasn't sure if acting normal towards him was the right path. Maybe she should just mention last night. She knew it would make her feel a lot better. She glanced slightly to her left where she could see Jace's hand placed on his right knee. Oh, how she wished he'd grab her hand and just hold it. She shook her head and looked back out into the window.

_I don't wanna waste the weekend_

_If you don't love me, pretend._

She felt a sudden tap on her thigh. She turned to look at Jace, who was looking back at her.

"Can we talk later?" he asked, quietly.

It's like he read her mind. Clary hesitated. What if it has nothing to do with last night?

"About?"

"To be honest?" he looked down at his lap and slowly back up at her. "Last night."

Fuck. He remembered. He had to have remembered. Clary felt her heart stop.

"What about it?" she asked, innocently.

"Everything about it"

_A few more hours then it's time to go_

_As my train rolls down the east coast I wonder how you keep warm._

Clary's eye brows furrowed together but she agreed. A lot of things happened last night… everything is such a broad term. It wasn't enough for her, but she dropped it. For now.

Simon sighed loudly. "This guy in front of us is going fifteen under the limit. What the hell is his problem? At this rate, we'll be lucky to make it to the city before rush hour."

"You need to calm down, Simon. There's no rush." Isabelle soothed.

_It's too late to cry, too broken to move on._

"That's still no excuse to be going under the speed limit!" Simon's voice rose. "This is ridiculous."

"Si, we're good. Just chill," Jace spoke up, resting a hand on Simon's shoulder. "Just be patient, man."

Clary heard Simon take a deep breath in and then out. He nodded. "Okay, fine."

"We're almost there," Isabelle said. She reached her hand over to Simon's free arm and rubbed it gently. "We're doing great on timing. No need to break out road-rage Simon."

Simon laughed a bit. "Okay, okay guys. I get it. I'm good."

Clary smiled slightly; relieved she didn't need to intervene.

_And still I can't let you be, most nights I hardly sleep._

_Don't take what you don't need from me._

Clary looked back out the window. She watched as the car passed a sign stating eleven more miles to New York City. She smiled. She couldn't even remember the last time she came out to the city. She must have been about five when she came with her mother and her brother. It was right after their father left them. Her mother had decided they needed some time away from their normal routine.

"What the fuck…" She heard Simon mumble. His voice got louder, more alarmed. "What the fuck is this guy doing?"

_It's just a drop in the ocean, a change in the weather._

_I was praying that you and me might end up together._

Everything after that was a blur. Clary heard screams coming from Isabelle. Jace was yelling at Simon to look out. And before they knew it, the car adjacent to them hit them, sending the car into a 360 spin. Clary held on to the seat in front of her and looked over at Jace, panicking. He was turning to look at her as the car slipped down the hill towards the trees. He yelled her name, but Clary couldn't hear anything over Isabelle's screaming. The car came to a startling halt as it made contact with a tree. Clary's head hit the window and Isabelle's screaming finally stopped.

_It's like wishing for rain as I stand in the desert_

_But I'm holding you closer than most 'cause you are my heaven._

The music was the last thing Clary heard before she blacked out.


	5. Chapter 5: What's Love Without Tragedy?

**A/N:** I know I just updated yesterday, but I had the chapter in my head and had to write it down. Hope you guys enjoy it! But I must warn you know, it will be a while before I update again, so make sure you let this chapter last. Haha, make sure you guys review! I love getting them :)

xoxo.

* * *

Jace woke with a start. He looked around himself. The unfamiliarity of the room startled him. Plain, white walls on every side of him. He heard steady beeping coming from a machine next to him. It was a heart monitor. He sat up slowly. He felt a sharp pain on his side, crying out.

"Oh Jace, honey, lay down, please." He heard his grandmother say. She was sitting down on a chair next to his hospital bed. He must have woken her up because she looked exhausted. "Thank God, you're awake. I was so worried." She stood up slowly and reached for his arm. "I'll go get the nurse. She'll bring you some more meds."

Jace was still confused, but didn't say anything. Why was he in the hospital anyway? He watched his grandmother made her way out of his room into the hallway. He finally looked down at himself. His left hand was stiff, an IV line giving him fluids made it hard for him to lift it. He lifted his right arm slowly. It was a bit sore but the pain was bearable. He wasn't sure if he should try sitting up again. The pain he had been in was certainly unbearable and he wasn't sure if he could endure that again.

Minutes later, his grandmother walked in with someone who must have been a nurse. She smiled at him and walked over to his heart monitor. "Hey Jace, how are you doing?" she asked as she pull off the clipboard on the table next to the machine.

Jace opened his mouth but hesitated. He watched the heart monitor's line beep indicating he was alive. "What… What happened?"

The nurse's face dimmed and Jace watched as she looked to his grandmother. Jace glanced at his grandmother, who had a sad look on her face. "What happened? Why am I here?" His voice rose slightly. "Last thing I remember was being in Simon's car with Isabelle and Clary and we were going to the city…" His voice trailed off as realization finally hit him. "I was in an accident." He said slowly. "We all were."

"Jace, do you remember exactly what happened?" He heard his grandmother ask, but he ignored the question.

"Where's Clary?" he asked. He got no answer. He sat up, ignoring the pain on his side. "Where's Clary?" His voice rose, dramatically.

"Jace, you need to lie back down. You have three bruised ribs and a fractured collarbone. You're in a very vulnerable state right now." The nurse said as she attempted to lie him back down on the bed.

"No, someone needs to answer my question. Where is Clary?" He shouted.

He heard his grandmother's voice trying the calm him but he couldn't make out what she was saying. He was trying to remember what had happened. He was trying to remember and play it out in his head again. Then suddenly…

"_What the fuck…" He heard Simon mumble. His voice got louder. "What the fuck is this guy doing?"_

_Jace then heard the crashing of metal and the car spinning out of control. It had first hit a lamppost resulting it to spin the opposite direction. He heard Isabelle's non-stop screaming and nothing else. He couldn't even hear himself thinking. His adrenaline started kicking in as he held on to the seat in front of him. Was this the moment he was going to die?_

_He felt a sudden feeling in his stomach and then felt the car go downhill, sliding across the mud. He looked to Clary, whose face was filled with panic. He called her name, but he couldn't even hear his own voice over Isabelle's screaming. The right side of the car crashed into a big oak tree, making the car come to a sudden stop. Isabelle had stopped screaming but Jace heard her rapid, panicking breathing. He heard Simon groaning in pain. He looked to Clary. Her head was leaning on the window, her eyes closed. He reached his arm out to her and stopped, feeling a sting of pain going through his body. "Clary," he said, raspy-sounding. She didn't respond. She didn't make any type of movement in response to his voice. Jace's eye lids got heavier as he heard Simon trying to calm down Isabelle._

"_Jace, don't fall asleep!" Isabelle exclaimed before he blacked out._

Jace shook his head, confused. "Why isn't anyone telling me where Clary is?" he exclaimed. He turned to his grandmother. "Please tell me." He begged.

She sighed, sitting down on the chair closest to the bed. She looked up at the nurse. "Give us a minute?"

Jace's heart started racing. The nurse nodded, leaving the room quietly. Jace turned back to his grandmother, his face blank. "You guys came in yesterday from the accident. When they got to the scene, Clary wasn't responding to anything. She was still breathing so they brought her in right away." Jace listened quietly, without speaking a word. "Turns out she had a lot of internal bleeding and she still hadn't waken up. She had some brain damage. They're still in surgery right now, but… they don't think she's going to be the same, Jace."

Jace's heart started beating faster and faster. "Clary, could die?" he managed to choke out, but he didn't need an answer. He already knew it. He looked down, unable to look back up at his grandmother. He felt a stinging sensation behind his eyes. "Could I have a minute?"

His grandmother nodded, placing a hand on his thigh. "Just be positive, honey." She smiled, sympathetically. "I'm going to go talk to the doctors." And with that, Jace was now by himself.

He felt something wet on his cheek. He lifted his right hand and touched his face. Tears. He was crying. Jace, who hadn't cried since his parents died many years ago, was now crying.

At that very moment, he knew.

He heard a knock on the door and quickly wiped his tears away. He looked up at his visitor.

"Hey man, you're up," Sebastian said with a slight smile. "Good, I was getting worried about you." He walked up to Jace's bed and stuffed his hands in his jean pockets.

"How is she? Do you know?"

Sebastian shook his head. "We don't know anything yet but it's not looking good, Jace." He hesitated for a minute, composing himself. "If everything goes as planned, the doctors are still saying there might be side effects."

"What kind of side effects?"

"Her brain. She might not regain part of her memory."

Jace was speechless. The Clary he'd known since his childhood might not be the Clary that comes out of that operating room. That scared him.

"We're hoping for the best though, you know. Trying to stay positive and all." Sebastian said, forcing a smile.

Jace attempted to swallow but his throat suddenly became very dry. "How are Simon and Iz?"

"They're fine, nothing too major. Simon had a broken arm and Iz had a concussion and fractured shoulder. Simon actually got discharged about an hour ago. He came by but you still hadn't woken up, so he went to go see Isabelle."

Jace nodded slowly. He still couldn't wrap his head around the situation at all. If he had been in Clary's seat instead, she would be fine. Her life wouldn't have been in danger like it is now.

"I'm going to go check on my mom," Sebastian said slowly. "I'll be back in a little bit." He turned around and headed for the door until Jace spoke up.

"Hey," Sebastian turned around to face his best friend. "Let me know if anything happens."

Sebastian nodded. "Jace," he started. Jace looked back up at him. "I'm glad you're okay."

Jace smiled. "Thanks, man." And Sebastian walked out the door.

* * *

Her eyes slowly opened and she felt a sting of pain in her stomach. Her eyes widened. Where was she? She observed her surroundings. White walls, a huge window, a TV mounted unto the wall, two empty chairs next to her bed, and a beeping machine next to her. She knew well enough to know she wasn't home, but at a hospital, the one place she completely despised. She thought it was so depressing here and made her uncomfortable. Not to mention people die here and that saddened her.

On the TV mounted on the wall were music videos playing. She blocked out the sound and tried listening to hear if anyone's voice she recognized was in the hallway. All she could hear was mumbling about possible diseases for the elderly women down the hall.

She felt a sudden itch on her head. She lifted her arm to itch it but instead of feeling her red locks, she felt a bandage. And pain.

Why was she even here? What happened?

She searched frantically for her personal remote and pressed the red button, which called the nurse. She needed answers.

Before she could place the remote down on the table next to her bed, a nurse and women and a boy about her age came running into the room. The women next to the nurse looked a mess. She looked like she had been crying for days and makeup was smeared under her eyes. Her fiery red hair was up in a messy ponytail, showing that she hadn't been around a mirror in a while. She recognized her as her mother, Jocelyn. The boy next to her mother was a bit taller than her with dark brown hair and dark eyes. He had deep circles under his eyes and his face looked pale. Her brother.

"Honey?" she head her mother say. She looked to her.

"What's going on?" Clary asked, still a bit clueless.

The nurse spoke up next. "You were in a car accident. We had to rush you into surgery and I need to ask you a few questions, okay?"

Clary nodded slowly, still a bit confused.

"Can you tell me your name?"

"Clary," she responded without hesitation.

"Can you tell me your whole name?" the nurse asked.

"Clarissa Adele Fray."

"When is your birthday?"

"February 12th 1995"

"Do you know who these two people are?"

Clary nodded and pointed to the red head. "That's my mom." Her finger shifted to her brother. "And that's Sebastian, my brother."

"Good," the nurse commented and wrote something down on the clipboard she had picked up on the table next to her a few minutes ago. "So the surgery went well," She looked to Jocelyn. "This is very good news."

Jocelyn grinned and made her way to Clary's side quickly. She grabbed her daughter's hand, kissing it. "Oh thank god," she mumbled. "I was so worried. I thought I'd never…" she trailed off, her hand trailing the side of Clary's face.

"What happened to my head?" She asked, looking to the nurse. "Am I okay?"

The nurse smiled slightly, still holding the clipboard in her dainty hands. Clary hadn't notice how tired the nurse looked. She looked a lot more tired than her own mother.

"Well you are fine now," the nurse began. "You had some brain damage from the crash and you had to undergo major surgery. You were let out of surgery almost five hours ago and it looks like you did wonderfully."

Clary nodded, taking it all in. "Who were the other people in the car?"

"You don't remember who you were in the car with, Clary?" Sebastian asked.

Clary shook her head, immediately regretting it afterward. She winced from the pain. She turned to the nurse. "Could I get some medicine please? My head is killing me."

"Of course," And with that, the nurse took off into the hallway.

"Honey," her mom started. Clary looked back to her. "Do you remember anything from the accident?"

Clary thought for a moment but nothing came to mind. "No, I don't remember anything."

Sebastian walked closer to the bed, stopping at the foot of it. "What do you remember?"

Clary shrugged slightly. "The last thing I remember was… It was your birthday!" she exclaimed. "Me, you and mom were sitting at the table eating lunch and then… everything goes blank."

Jocelyn gasped in horror. "Clary, that was months ago…" Sebastian said slowly. "Are you sure you can't remember anything else?"

The nurse walked back into the room with a syringe in her hand. She lifted Clary's IV and inserted the syringe through the whole. She released the liquid in the syringe into Clary's IV. "It should kick in in a few minutes, sweetheart."

"Thank you," Clary said, attempting to itch her head again.

"Nurse, my sister can't remember anything that's happened in the past four months…"

The nurse's eyes widened. She looked to Clary, a confused look on her face. "The last thing you remember was from four months ago?"

"Yeah," she responded. The nurse stared at her for a moment and excused herself to find a doctor. Clary looked back to her family. "I'm going to take it as this is bad…"

Jocelyn's face was in her hands and Sebastian was sitting down next to her bed, a look of confusion on his face. The room was quiet besides the new song that was now playing on the television.

_Red lipstick, rose petals, heartbreak. I was his Marilyn Monroe._

Clary heard slow shuffling making its way into her room and she looked up to see a familiar face. She recognized his golden, wavy hair and his sarcastic gold eyes. But they were different now. They had sadness and guilt in them instead. He looked relieved to see her.

"Hey, you're up," he said, smiling. He made his way to her bedside with one arm crutch under his right arm. He had no shirt on but a bandage around his stomach. "How are you feeling?"

Clary shrugged. "I'm alive, aren't I?" She smiled slightly but it disappeared quickly. "You were in the accident too?"

_Brown eyes, tuxedo, fast cars. A James Dean on the low._

"What do you mean? Of course I was… You don't remember?" Jace seemed very confused. He looked up to Sebastian for help. Sebastian said nothing at first, trying to find the words to say. He, himself, wasn't sure what was going on. A doctor came into the room and Jocelyn rushed over to talk to him. They talked lowly as the three teenagers continued the conversation.

"She doesn't remember…" Sebastian started.

"But she remembers me… and she obviously remembers you… I don't get what you're saying."

_I ask you, what's the matter? You say, oh it's nothing at all._

"Short term memory loss," The doctor intervened in their conversation. "She can't remember the last four months because she's suffering from short term memory loss. It could have been caused by one of two things; either it was from the crash, itself, or something went wrong in surgery. We wouldn't be able to know if it's the last unless we go back into surgery to see."

Jocelyn gasped again, unable to speak. Her daughter didn't remember the past four months of her life. She didn't know what to do.

"I don't remember the past four months of my life?" Clary repeated. "Are you fucking kidding me?" She exclaimed angrily. "How do I even know what I've missed?"

_Heart's racing, outta control. And you knew that I couldn't let it go._

"There's no way for you to regain your memory back permanently. The only real effective thing you can do to try and regain your memories is watch home-videos, maybe read an old diary, or even ask your family and friends. They'll know better from first hand experiences." The doctor said sympathetically. "I am very sorry Clarissa."

Clary felt a burning sensation and then tears falling down her cheek. She'll never get those four months of her life back. She'll never remember anything that happened, any memorable moment she wanted to remember for the rest of her life or any horrible moment she had wished she'd forgotten. Now she can't remember anything. What was she going to do?

_You used to be this boy I loved. And I used to be this girl of your dreams._

Jace's head started hurting. This couldn't be happening. Clary didn't remember anything from the past four months meaning she didn't remember anything that had happened between them. It broke his heart. What if she never felt what she did for him before after this? What was he going to do?

_Who knew the course of this one drive injured us fatally._

Jocelyn left the room with the doctor, leaving the three teenagers alone again. It was quiet for a moment before Clary spoke. "So… what have I missed?"

The two boys stared at her, in horror. Clary sighed at their reaction. "Come on, guys. I'm just trying to lighten up the mood a little. It's really depressing right now, if you ask me."

"Well, can you blame us?" Sebastian said, folding his arms across his chest. It was a rhetorical question but Clary still felt a need to answer him. "Considering this isn't happening to _you_ and happening to me, and I happen to be being more positive about it… you guys shouldn't be depressed."

"Well I see your personality hasn't changed much…" Jace commented, trying to lighten the mood. "What a shame."

_You took the best years of my life; I took the best years of your life._

Clary scoffed, annoyed. "I've been conscious for about half hour now and you've already managed to annoy me. Wonderful, Wayland. I applaud your skills."

Jace smiled and glanced up at Sebastian. He saw concern all over his face. He knew exactly what he was thinking too. There was nothing either of them could do.

But Jace did know one thing. If it was the last thing he did, he was going to make Clary fall in love with him. This time he wasn't going to mess up. He was given a brand new slate to start over with. He was determined to make it right this time.

_Felt like love struck me in the night, I pray that love don't strike twice._

"So is anyone going to tell me about this accident I was in or…?" Clary asked, breaking the silence again. The two boys laughed lightly.

"Speaking of the accident," Jace started. He looked back at his friend. "Have you heard about Iz?"

"I checked on her a while ago. She was doing a lot better. She's doped up on meds." Sebastian said.

"Good," Jace said. "We all know Isabelle can be a bit dramatic at times and if she wasn't on meds, she'd be driving everyone insane."

Sebastian didn't say anything. He didn't want to talk about Isabelle right now. Of course, he was concerned at first, but now, since he knew she was okay, he didn't want anything to do with her. He had his reasons.

_Brown eyes, tuxedo, fast cars. A James Dean on the low._

Clary cleared her throat, attempting to get the boys' attention again. Jace smiled and attempted to fill her in on what exactly happened yesterday, at least to the best of his ability. Her memory was a little foggy for him, but at least he remembered most of it. The only thing he didn't remember was coming to the hospital and he didn't necessarily want to remember it either.

Clary attempted to be positive about everything but she couldn't help but shake the feeling that she was missing something. That something in her life was missing. She knew the obvious answer, which was her memory. Her memory was missing. But that's not what it was. She felt something else missing. She couldn't exactly put her finger on it.

She watched as Jace's hair shined in the sun coming from the window. She remembered the baseball game they had gone to months ago, but that's all that came up when she thought of Jace. She knew there were a lot more memories, but she couldn't channel her brain to find them. She became very tired all of the sudden. "You know what guys, I'm getting pretty tired." She said slowly. She felt numb and she kind of liked it. "I'm going to… Going to fall asleep." She said yawning.

_What's love without tragedy?_

And with that, Clary dozed off into a deep sleep.


	6. Chapter 6: I'm With You

**A/N: **Thanks for much for all the reviews and I know some of you wanted to murder me because of what happened, hehe. But I do hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. This is a shorter chapter, but I just wanted you guys to get a feel of what Clary is feeling right now with everything that has happened. Well happy reading and pleas please please review with what you think!

xoxo

* * *

Clary stood by the railing, looking out into the water. She felt safe here. It was familiar to her. She needed familiarity right now.

She had been out of the hospital for a week now and she even though she didn't admit it to anyone, she still didn't feel like her old self. The doctor had told her it was going to be awhile – a few months, maybe a year – before being comfortable with herself again, but she didn't know if she could wait that long. She wanted to feel like herself now.

A soft breeze moved the few strands of hair in her face away. It was getting a bit dark now; the sun was close to setting in the distance. She watched as the waves from the lake moved out and then towards her. The sound calmed her. If it weren't for how cold it was, she'd be walking in the sand by now. But due to the bipolar weather New York deals with in the fall, she decided to stay away from that option. She shivered slightly in her black sweatshirt as another breeze surrounded her.

As she slowly walked to the right side of the railing, she heard faint music coming from a window from a house a few feet away from her. She hummed lightly as the waves crashed against the sand again.

_I'm standing on a bridge. I'm waiting in the dark. I thought that you'd be here by now._

She continued walking to the right and came to the entrance of the sand bank. She stopped, looking out into the water again. By now, she'd hope she'd remember what had happened the past few months, but nothing worked. She had tried looking at old pictures, old home videos, anything to help her remember. She was exhausted from trying. Everything was so much harder without being able to remember.

_There's nothing but the rain, no footsteps on the ground. I'm listening but there's no sound._

Everyone was becoming frustrated with trying, including herself. Her doctor had told her to be patient, not to force herself, but she couldn't help it. She remembered enough to know she was stubborn enough not to listen. She wanted what she wanted now. And even though she was trying to seem like she was okay and patient to everyone else, she really wasn't. No one, not even Isabelle knew that.

_Isn't anyone trying to find me? Won't somebody come take me home?_

Ever since the accident, her relationship with everyone – even her family – had changed. She felt more like a charity case now than part of a family. Everyone was trying to help her remember when in reality, she just needed someone to be there for her, to comfort her.

She sniffled. She realized she was crying. She swiped a single tear rolling down her freckled cheek.

She heard footsteps behind her, but didn't turn around. It was a public beach, even if she was having a private moment. The footsteps grew louder as they walked across the wooden boardwalk and stopped next to her. She recognized the figure quickly. His golden, wavy hair was a bit shorter than usual. She remembered he had gotten a haircut a few days ago. He wore a red hoodie and a regular pair of jeans. He didn't look at her, but out at the ocean. She did the same.

_It's a damn cold night. Trying to figure out this life._

A soft breeze blew by making Clary's fiery red hair blow wildly in the wind. She didn't attempt to fix hair. She didn't care right now.

"I thought I'd find you here," he finally said. His eyes didn't leave the waves. "You used to come here a lot in the summer whenever you wanted to think."

She nodded slowly. "When I got here, it felt so familiar." She looked to the sun, now setting in the distance. "Now I know why."

Jace nodded but didn't say anything. Clary sighed, watching as the sun slowly set beyond the waters. It painted the waters a light gold and pink color. She smiled.

"We used to watch a lot of sunsets in the summer." He said, lowly. She looked to him, but he was still looking out. "Even if we weren't at the beach initially, we'd make our way here every night and watch it set." He smiled and finally looked at her.

_Won't you take me by the hand? Take me somewhere new._

She smiled back at him. "No matter what we were doing we'd always come?" she looked out to the setting sun as he nodded. "Just us two?"

He shrugged. "Most of the time. Sometimes Iz would come, but most of the time, it was just me and you."

She hesitated for a moment. She could feel his eyes on her. "I have a question," she started. Jace waited, looking at her. "Were we ever a thing?" she asked, pointing to him and then herself.

Jace grinned but shook his head. "No, just friends"

Clary nodded, sinking in the information. "Are you sure?"

Jace laughed slightly but didn't say yes or no. He ignored the question all together. He looked back to the sun, half way set now.

"We were friends ever since I remember. You probably remember most of it. I mean, you didn't remember half of your memory." He smiled at her and she rolled her eyes. She felt so comfortable with him. "But we kind of grew apart for a while when high school started." He shrugged. "But we were still friends."

She nodded again. She looked out down the street and street lights were now lighting up. It was a lot darker now than before. Above them, a single lamppost flickered to life.

_I don't know who you are, but I... I'm with you. _

"We should get going." Jace finally said, breaking the silence. He turned slightly, getting ready to walk away until Clary grabbed his arm stopping him. He turned to her with a puzzled look on his face. She pointed to the setting sun. "It's not finished yet." She said, looking back to it.

He smiled at her, regaining his previous position. She didn't let go of his arm as the sun completely set moments later. She looked up to him now, smiling.

"We can go now." She announced.

The lamppost above them made it difficult to see her eyes, but Jace imagined those emerald eyes looking back into his gold ones. His heart began to beat faster. Right now would have been the perfect moment; the perfect moment to kiss her. But he stopped himself. He couldn't confuse her even more than she already was with everything that was happening. He wanted to bring her closer to him, not push her away.

"Alright, let's go." He said. He draped his arm around her small shoulders, leading her to the car parked on the side of the road. She hesitated a moment seeing the vehicle. She looked up at Jace, fear in her eyes. Jace smiled sympathetically and nodded. "You'll be okay. If I can do it, so can you."

She nodded slowly but continued walking to the car. She paused at the door as Jace walked around to the driver's side. "Trust me" he said to her, over the hood of the car.

"Okay," she said, opening the car door. Jace got in the car, revving it to life. She winced at the noise, but got in the car slowly. Jace looked to her smiling. She smiled back and shut the door.

_I'm with you._


	7. Chapter 7: Catching Feelings

**A/N:** I'm finally giving you guys an update and I'm sorry it took so long. I got really busy with school and work hat I couldn't make time for writing. I got on break last week so I finally had time to finish writing this chapter. I go back to school next week so review and let me know what you guys think and hopefully I'll be able to write another chapter before I go back!

Oh and you guys know how I usually put song lyrics in mychapters, but I decided to do it differently this time. Let me know what you guys think of it!

xoxo

* * *

Jace knocked on the door quietly. He knew she was by herself, but still it was risky. He knew her brother was walking around somewhere looking for him. He knocked once more before the door swung open.

"Jace?"

"Isabelle" Jace greeted, nodding once. The brunette looked a bit confused to see him standing at her doorway. She peeked her head out into the hallway, looking left and then right searching for Alec. He was nowhere to be in sight.

"Are you lost?"

Jace gave her a tired look. "No, I need to talk to you." He waited a few minutes. "Can I come in or…?"

"Oh, yeah" Isabelle said before moving to the side, giving Jace enough room to walk in. Isabelle shut the door behind. "So?"

Jace turned around to face her. "I need to talk to you about Clary."

Isabelle's right eye brow rose and she walked to her bed. Jace finally saw her cast on her arm. It was pink and had a few scribbles on it. He sighed quietly.

"What about her?" She asked slowly and cautiously.

"I need you to not remind her of what happened between her and I."

Isabelle gave Jace a dumbfounded look. "Are you kidding me, Jace? How are you going to ask me to do that? I'm her best friend and she's depending on me to tell her the truth on what's happened." She folded her arm across her chest, her free arm resting on her cast. "You can't ask me to do this."

"You have to let me explain myself first." Jace said, trying to calm her down. "You don't even know my side of the story."

"You have a thing for Clary. Everyone sees it. She never understood before the accident, but she knew – whether she wanted to admit it or not."

"She knew I had a thing for her?"

Isabelle shot him an annoyed look. "Okay, this meeting – or whatever it is – is over. I'm going to tell Clary when she's ready to know."

Jace sighed. "Isabelle, please don't. Let me have a clean slate, I beg you."

Isabelle's face softens hearing him beg. She knew he really cared about her. She knew she'd save Clary a lot of pain by not telling her at all, but she couldn't just not tell her either. That would make her a terrible friend. That's one thing she didn't want to be.

"I'm not going to hurt her again, Isabelle. I can promise you that."

She looked at Jace. His eyes full of hope. She sighed. "Fine, but I swear to God, Wayland, if you make me regret this…" she trailed off when she saw the grin spread across his face.

"You won't regret this." He said making his way over to her. He hugged her, careful to not hurt her arm. "Thank you." He whispered.

She smiled as he walked out of her room. She sighed, hoping this wasn't a mistake.

* * *

Clary looked at her reflection through her bathroom mirror. She examined the freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her fiery red hair made her skin look paler than usual. Her emerald eyes were looking back at her. She faked a smile and it reflected back to her. She blinked and left the bathroom.

It had been about two weeks after the accident and she had tried everything to remember her summer. She had this feeling that it had been important to her before. She felt as though a big chunk of her life was missing, even though it technically wasn't. She was overreacting, she knew. But she just wanted to know so badly.

Her mother had tried her best to fill her in on important events that had occurred like her Aunt Imogen getting married in June and her cousin Lila having a baby in August. Even though it was helpful, she knew that wasn't it. Sebastian tried to be patient with her every day. He showed her pictures, watched movies with her that they had seen in the summer, but it still didn't trigger any memories. She was getting tired of waiting.

Her room was a bit chilly than normal. It seemed like the cool weather was finally kicking in. She walked over to her dresser and started rummaging through her bottom drawer. She pulled out a black oversized sweatshirt. It felt soft to the touch and she smiled. She pulled it over her tank top and automatically feeling the warmth of it around her torso. She closed the drawer as she heard a knock behind her. She turned around to the metal door and smiled when she saw his blonde hair shining in the sun.

Jace had been spending a lot of time with her lately and she honestly didn't mind. She liked Jace. She liked that he came around. She liked that he spent all her free time with her. He helped her to try to remember. He was patient with her, kind, caring. She smiled as she walked to the door and unlocked it. He opened the door, grinning.

"Hey you," He greeted, closing the door behind him. He hugged her with no hesitation. She smiled. "How are you feeling?"

She nodded. "I'm good." She broke their embrace and walked to her bed. "Same old, same old, I guess." She shrugged.

He smiled sympathetically at her. He walked to her bed and sat down across from her. "It'll get better. I know you're getting impatient but just give it some more time." He smiled. "Should we have story time?"

Clary rolled her eyes. "I'm not five. I feel like you're about to tuck me in to bed and pull out Little Red Riding Hood to read to me."

Jace smirked. "I mean, if it would help, it would be rude for me not to oblige."

Clary laughed. "Shut up," Jace laughed as well and their eyes met. Jace felt a shiver run through his body. His heart started beating faster, his hands got sweaty. She looked away before he could say anything. She crossed her arms across her small torso and rubbed her hands up and down her arms.

"You're cold?" he asked, finally breaking the ice. She smiled up at him and nodded. "Yeah, the basement gets colder a bit faster than the rest of the house. It's annoying."

"Yeah, I know." He nodded to the window behind her. The sun was shining brightly through the glass. "It's not that cold out, so that's why I asked."

She smiled and shrugged. "I'm just cold, I guess."

He smiled and signaled her to come closer to him. She did as she was told and they were face to face, inches apart. Without hesitation, he began to rub his hands up and down her arms creating warmth underneath her clothing. She smiled at his kind actions. "Thank you," she said lowly.

He smiled at her but didn't say anything. She suddenly shivered which made them both laugh.

"I guess it didn't work that well, huh?" Jace smiled shyly, which made Clary smile.

It was quiet for a moment. There were no sounds, no talking. Clary couldn't hear anything but her heart beating inside her chest. She looked up to Jace's golden eyes and saw something that felt familiar to her. She finally broke the silence. "Jace, when I asked you about if we had ever had a thing a few weeks ago at the pier… did you lie to me?"

Jace's eyebrows furrowed together in surprised. He was caught completely off guard. He didn't know what to say. Now, he didn't have the ocean or the sunset to be a distraction while he lied to her again. He had nothing to distract her now.

He looked down at his lap. He was silent.

Clary sighed. "You did lie, didn't you?" She felt her hands clam up and her neck get hot. "How could you lie to me like that? I'm so vulnerable right now and you took advantage of that, didn't you?"

Jace looked up to her finally. "Clary…"

"No," she said, moving herself away from him. "Here I thought we were having this cute, romantic moment and now I come to find out that you were lying to me this entire time?" She shook her head. "I needed you to tell me the truth, Jace, and you didn't!" She got up quickly from her bed, made her way to her bedroom door and walked out into her living space. Jace got up and ran after her.

"Clary! Wait, you need to let me explain!"

She was halfway around the bend to the staircase when she turned around abruptly to face Jace. "Go ahead," She said angrily. "Explain. I will love to hear this."

Jace caught up to her, filled in the space between them and kissed her. His hand reached her face, cupping it gently in his hand. Her body tensed up in surprise and then loosened in his grasp. She fell into the kiss. It seemed like it was the one thing that felt normal to her in a long time.

Jace finally broke away from Clary, his eyes still closed. Clary bit her sore bottom lip, gently and looked up at him. His eyes were now looking down at hers. She didn't say anything.

"That's my explanation." He whispered to her.

_Trying to keep it all together, but enough is enough._

_They say we're too young for love, but I'm catching feelings._


	8. Chapter 8: You and I

**A/N:** So I think I've tortured you guys enough with waiting. I had started this chapter a little while ago and decided, well its Saturday night and I have nothing else to do so why not finish the chapter and post it? Haha, hopefully you guys are grateful I chose this path for my night instead of another one! Just one thing, there is a new character and she is completely made up so don't go asking me questions on where she is in the books or anything. She is a character of my own imagination. But I hope you guys like the chapter and there will be lots of stuff that will be going on soon! But please, please, please review.

xoxo

* * *

Clary opened her eyes slowly. There was no sunlight coming from her windows. There were no birds chirping outside. She turned her head slowly to her nightstand where her alarm clock was placed. 3:54AM.

She groaned lightly and moved her head to the other side of the pillow. She had school in the morning – well a tutor – and she couldn't even sleep through a full night. Tomorrow was the day she was going to start with her personal tutor to brush up on some things before going back to school. As much as she said she was fine, the doctor ordered for her to have a tutor – just for a few weeks at least. Clary didn't mind missing school at all, but she didn't feel like staying home all day with a complete stranger in order to "brush up" on school work.

She sighed. She really needed to fall asleep. She decided to pull her cellphone from under her pillow to entertain her in order to fall asleep. She read an article somewhere on the internet that said people who use their phones before bed sleep less, but right now, she was just too bored to care.

She had two unread text messages. She unlocked her phone, pressing the little conversation bubble button on the bottom of the screen and stared at the bold names eliminating her screen.

Isabelle.

Jace.

Her heart started racing at the sight of the last name. She skipped over Isabelle's text messages and clicked on Jace's.

_I found myself thinking about you before bed, so I decided to text you. You are probably sleeping, but I just wanted to say that I'm glad you gave me another chance. You won't regret it. Talk to you tomorrow. 'Night._

She grinned at her phone stupidly. It had been a few days since Jace had first kissed her and since then, she couldn't help but act stupidly around him. She legit turned to melted butter when she was around him. She had forgiven him for lying after he had fully explained himself – in words. But at the same time, she couldn't help but think that there was something Jace was hiding from her; the reason why he lied in the first place. It bothered her, sure, but part of her didn't care either.

He had told her he lied in the first place because he didn't want to add too much onto her already full plate. She understood. She didn't know now if she could handle a possible relationship and gaining her missing memory back, but she was determined to make it work, that's for sure.

She was happy now. Happier than she was after everything that had happened a few weeks ago. She wasn't sure if she was this happy before the accident, but it didn't matter to her anymore. She was living in the present, not the past.

She didn't bother texting Jace back. He was most likely sleeping anyways. She scrolled back to Isabelle's message.

_Hey you. Good luck tomorrow with your tutor. I'll call you after school! Xoxo_

She smiled. Isabelle had been so good with her. She couldn't ask for a better best friend. She didn't think there was any other person who was better at being a best friend then Isabelle, to be honest. Isabelle watched old movies and TV shows with her. Told her stories from the summertime and showed her tons and tons of pictures to go with the stories. Next to Jace, Isabelle had to be one of the most patient people who were trying to help her remember. She couldn't be any more grateful with the support system she had.

* * *

Isabelle recognized the light sound of footsteps coming toward her. She didn't need to turn around to know who it was. She felt a tap on her shoulder. She grinned as she turned away from her locker to see… Sebastian.

Her face dropped. He was certainly not who she was expecting. Her hearing game was obviously a little off today. She recomposed herself as she waited for him to say something.

The hall way was halfway deserted due to school officially starting in a few minutes. There were a few students down the hall near the bathrooms, but nowhere near Sebastian and Isabelle. It was just them two.

"Hey," Sebastian finally said.

"Hi" Isabelle crossed her arm to lay on her pink arm cast. "What's up?"

"How's the arm?" he asked, looking at her arm and then back at her.

She nodded. "It's a lot better." She smiled a bit. "Thanks for asking."

He smiled slightly and nodded. "I was wondering if we could talk…"

"About what?"

Sebastian looked down at the ground for a second then back at Isabelle. "Class is about to start. Could you just come over after school?"

"I have plans with Simon after school." Isabelle said quickly.

Sebastian nodded slowly. "So are you going to keep pretending nothing has happened between us?"

Isabelle looked at Sebastian carefully. His dark eyes stared back at her, meeting her gaze. His muscular jaw was set; his hair was longer than usual, messy but passing his ears barely. Her heart skipped a beat remembering that day.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. "We're not going to talk about this right now."

"Then when?" Sebastian challenged. "Because I feel like you've been ignoring me since Simon came back because of what happened between us."

"I've been ignoring you because Simon is my boyfriend." Isabelle snapped. "I owe him that much as to not speak to other guys."

"I'm your friend."

"You were my summer hook-up. I don't see 'friend' anywhere in that title." She said lowly.

"I wasn't just a hook-up, Isabelle, and you know it." Sebastian said, before walking down the hall. The school bell rang suddenly signaling Isabelle was late for her first class of the day. She groaned, slammed her locker shut, and walked quickly down the opposite way. This was going to be a very long day.

* * *

Jace turned the corner of the hall way and spotted Simon near the double doors. It was the end of the day and school had let out a few minutes ago. He jogged to catch up with the average height teenager with glasses. "Hey man, what are you doing later?"

Simon turned to his friend and nodded in acknowledgement. "Isabelle and I have plans. Why what's up?"

Jace shrugged slightly. "Just wanted to see if you wanted to hang out with Sebastian and I. We're going back to his house and will probably watch the game that's on tonight."

"That sounds cool." Simon said. "I'm down."

"Aren't you going to ask Isabelle first?" Jace said, smiling a bit. "You know how she is."

Simon shook his head. "She won't mind. Clary will be home." He looked at his friend, annoyed. "We were going to watch some sappy movie anyways."

Jace laughed. "Alright, so I'll see you later then." He continued to jog out the double doors to the shining sun outside. Halfway to his truck, he stopped abruptly. Leaning on the red hood of his truck was someone he didn't expect to see. He wasn't sure how to react exactly. He wasn't sure if he should be happy or upset. He just stood there in the middle of the parking lot, stunned.

The blonde turned suddenly as though she felt a pair of eyes on her. She grinned automatically when seeing Jace. Her straight blonde hair swayed in the wind and she walked over to him. Jace still hadn't moved from his spot.

She skipped the last few steps to him, still grinning. She was stressed in dark jeans and a bright green top that had an empire waist. Jace stared as though he was seeing a mirage.

"Are you going to say something or just gawk at me instead?" she said finally. She put her hands on her hips, mockingly.

Jace grinned. "I'm just… wow." He hugged her then and smelled the watermelon scent from her hair. So many memories came to mind. He shook them out of his mind. "I can't believe you're here." He said, once they separated from each other. "Lily, I can't believe it. How – ?"

She smiled her dazzling smile that had once took his breath away. "My dad got transferred back here. I was so excited that the first thing I knew I had to do when I came back was see you!"

Jace smiled, but felt a pinch of sadness with dealing with the situation at hand.

"So," she said, linking her arm around his. "I do expect to have a tour hosted by you sometime today."

"It hasn't been that long since you left. Nothing has changed."

She stopped walking, mid-step. She glared at him. "Don't fight my wishes, Wayland." She smiled. "I've missed you like you have no idea! Clear your calendar this weekend because we are having some major Jace and Lily time," she grinned. "Like the old times."

Jace smiled, urging her to continue walking. They finally got to his truck and he unlocked the doors with his key locker. "I actually have plans this weekend…" he said, getting into his car. Lily mimicked his movements and fastened her seatbelt. "Cool, I'll come with!"

"No, I mean, I have plans." He said again. He revved the engine to life and looked at her. Her face fell suddenly in realization on what he was saying. A moment later, she smiled. "Are you trying to tell me you have a girlfriend, Wayland, or are you saying you have some major partying plans this weekend?"

Jace laughed and began to back up the truck. "I have a girlfriend now, actually."

"Who's the lucky girl?" she asked, faking a smile.

Jace switched gears and began driving out of the parking lot. "You'll meet her soon. Don't worry you'll love her."

_It's been a long time since I came around._

_Been a long time but I'm back in town._

_This time I'm not leaving without you._


	9. Chapter 9: Don't Trust Me

**A/N: **Kind of a short chapter, but I'm giving you a little sneak peek at Lily and her character. And yay for bitchy Isabelle! Hahaha, review and I might update again before the weekend is over. Won't make any promises though!

xoxo

* * *

Clary grinned running to the front door. The echoing of the door bell ringing moments before rang in her ear. Clary could sense Isabelle behind her as she reached the front door. She knew it was Jace and she couldn't help but be excited to see him. Call her the corny, over attached girlfriend, if you must, but she didn't care. She loved seeing him, spending time with him, having him all to herself. She didn't want to have it any other way. She can say she was genuinely happy.

Clary turned the door knob and swung open the door with a grin. "Hey!" Her grin vanished slowly when she saw the unfamiliar blonde next to her boyfriend. Isabelle stood behind Clary, confused as well. Jace smiled and stepped into the house. He gave Clary a kiss on the cheek, but didn't say anything. The blonde girl followed him inside, smiling politely at the two confused girls at the door. Clary slowly shut the door as her eyes followed Jace and the stranger down the hall to the living room.

Isabelle broke the silence first. "Who the hell is that?"

"I have no idea." Clary looked up to her friend. "She doesn't look familiar at all?"

Isabelle shook her head. She took Clary's arm and chauffeured her to the living room. The two girls turned the corner to where the boys and the stranger were sitting and talking.

Isabelle groaned quietly at the sight of Sebastian. She did not want to deal with him right now. Instead, she walked over to where Simon was sitting and sat next to him. He welcomed her with the crooked grin she loved. She could feel Sebastian's eyes follow her, but she chose not to glance in his direction. Clary stood in the front of the room for a minute, not sure where to sit. Simon and Isabelle were on a two-seater loveseat. Sebastian, Jace and the stranger were on the four-seater lounge couch – with Jace sitting in the middle.

This left Clary to either sit on the other side of the stranger or by herself in the recliner. She sighed lightly and sat across from the lounge couch by herself. She turned to Isabelle and she could see her best friend's sympathy written all over her face. Clary shrugged slightly and then turned away.

Isabelle cleared her throat loudly, interrupting the boys' conversation. Everyone, including Clary turned to look at her. She smiled innocently. "So who is this blonde bombshell next to you, Jace?"

The girl's cheeks got red as everyone turned to look at her. She opened her mouth to speak but Jace answered first. "Oh yeah," he smiled apologetically to her and then looked back at his friends. "This is Lily Overfelt."

Isabelle nodded slowly. " And how do you guys know each other?"

Lily smiled shyly. "We were best friends in middle school. I used to live here before my dad got transferred to San Diego a few years back. He just got transferred back here yesterday."

Jace smiled at her and Clary could feel her heart sink to her stomach.

"Best friends…" Isabelle tapped her chin lightly with one finger. "Do you mean you guys were middle school sweat hearts?"

Lily's face turned red again and Jace eyed Isabelle annoyed, realizing what she was doing. Isabelle smiled lightly. "I have my answer. There's no need for a response, _Lily_."

Lily's face changed from shy to irritated, quickly. Clary could see that her face was no longer red with embarrassment.

Isabelle placed her hand on Simon's knee and smiled at him. She then looked at everyone else and stood up. "Will you guys excuse Clary and I for some girl time?" She had made her way to Clary's recliner and urged her to stand up. Clary did so, a little confused as to what was going on. No one said a word. Sebastian was holding in laughter as the girls walked past Lily. "Have fun with the boys, Lil." Isabelle said and her and Clary walked out of the room.

* * *

Lily pushed a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. She had been here for not even twenty minutes before some bitch interrogated. She scoffed lightly. She was not going to deal with this again. Not in her hometown. San Diego, of course, was a different story. She had been in unfamiliar territory, but now, she was home in her own territory. Things were going to be a lot different then how they were. She wasn't going to take bullshit from anybody. She wasn't going to be pushed around by anybody – of course, the black haired bitch was an exception. She hadn't been expecting it. But from then on, she was on her A-game.

She couldn't help but lean back into the couch and stare as Jake's fingers made their way into his hair, brushing through it. Younger Jace had always had his hair shorter, never this long. She liked it. She liked how the waves of his hair curved slightly at the top of his ears and how when the sun shined on it, it was almost blinding.

She smiled confidently at herself. She had him at one point in their lives – despite the fact that they were twelve. He had been hopelessly in love with her. If she really wanted to, she could get him back to being that way again. Her eyes narrowed slightly, looking past Jace's muscular jaw line to the dark haired boy next to him. They hadn't been introduced yet, but she could tell by the way he looking at her now, he was undressing her with his dark eyes. She smiled seductively at him. A single eyebrow rose, questioning her actions. She smiled again to reassure him. He smiled back at her with his glossy, pearly whites.

She couldn't lie; he was completely adorable. She paused for a moment as the gears turned in her head. She sat back in her seat and stared at the wall opposite her. There, on the white wall, was a family picture. In the picture was a mother with fiery red hair, like the girl who had opened the door earlier. Her eyes were green and welcoming. She hadn't seen the motherly figure since she had been in the house, probably at work. The father had darker hair but the grey specks of hair were even visible through the picture. She shivered slightly. The signs of old aging creeped her out. The boy on the other side of Jace resembled the man almost identically. Then there was the boy, who looked younger in the photograph then he looked now. His hair had been spiked up instead of grown out and his face was a bit chubby. She smiled. On the other side of him was the fiery redhead from earlier Her eyes were a bright green and her face paler than in person. She looked younger as well.

She sighed and looked to her left to a photograph sitting on a side table. She picked it up gently and held it with both hands. In the picture was a picture of the red head, the mystery boy, and Jace laughing and smiling. It looked like a recent picture because Jace still looked somewhat the same as he did in the picture. The sun shining in the background and the bathing suits were the only clues to the time of year: summer. One of Jace's arms was wrapped around the red head and his other was wrapped around the back of the neck of the mystery boy. Jace – despite his blond golden hair – almost looked like part of the family. She smiled lightly.

She placed the picture frame back and looked back to the boys. The boy on the other couch was wearing brown glasses and had an innocent boy demeanor to him that attracted her. She smiled at him. He looked surprised for a moment before relaxing and smiling back at her. How it seemed earlier, this guy was the dark haired bitch's property. She scoffed to herself. The question was, did she care?

She got up slowly, catching Jace's attention. "Hey, where you going?"

She smiled innocently. "I'm just going to get a glass of water." She looked past to the mystery boy. "Don't worry, I'll find the kitchen."

Mystery boy smiled at her.

"Anyone want anything?" she offered. She turned slightly in order to get everyone's attention. The boys shook their heads but stared. She smiled sweetly and turned around to leave the room. Her sweet smile turned into a conniving grin. She was going to have a lot of fun with this.

_Don't trust a hoe.  
Never trust a hoe.  
Won't trust a hoe,  
Don't trust me._


	10. Chapter 10: Toxic Valentine

**A/N:** Here's a filler chapter for now. Don't forget to review and let me know what you think Lily's plans are!

xoxo

* * *

Isabelle rushed Clary into the kitchen and down the stairs to Clary's lair. Clary had no idea what was going on. She was simply an innocent accomplice taken by her own will. Isabelle raced into Clary's bedroom and grabbed her laptop off her desk.

"What are you doing?" Clary asked as she watched her best friend sit on her bed with her laptop.

"We are going to do some major research on this Lily chick." Isabelle looked up at Clary. "I have a really bad feeling about her."

Clary walked to her bed and sat down, quietly. Sure, she was a little anxious of how close Lily and Jace used to be, but that didn't mean they were going to rekindle anything. Right?

Isabelle typed swiftly on the black keyboard and stared at the screen for a minute. She then passed the light laptop to her friend. Clary stared.

Isabelle had gotten to Lily's Facebook page and there, on the screen, were numerous pictures of Lily and Jace. They looked about 13. Sebastian and Jace had become friends around middle school. It had to have been when she had left because she never heard anything about her before. Sebastian didn't seem to have recognized her either.

Isabelle snatched the laptop back, scrolling down Lily's newsfeed. She gasped slightly. " Jace left her a post not that long ago…" She looked to Clary.

"What did it say?" Clary wanted to trust Jace. She did trust Jace. She just didn't trust this Lily chick.

" 'Haven't seen you in forever. Come visit soon.' It was posed a month and a half ago. Before the accident, maybe?" Isabelle said, continuing to scroll down.

Clary stared at her carpet. That didn't mean anything. Her and Jace weren't anything at that time anyways, or she didn't think they were. She didn't remember much before the accident, but with way Isabelle talked about it before, it seemed that Clary and Jace were just friends before.

"God, I love being a nosey bitch," Isabelle commented, clicking on Lily's pictures. Clary sighed. She wasn't in the mood for this. She got up from her bed and started heading to her door. "I'm going to go get something to drink." Isabelle nodded but her eyes didn't leave the illuminated screen.

Clary walked through her own personal living room to the staircase. She walked up the stairs slowly, not sure if Lily was still in her house. She didn't want an awkward run in. She didn't want to be questioned. She didn't want to be mean to the girl.

She opened the door that led to the kitchen, slowly. She peeked her head through, making sure the coast was clear. She opened the door wide, sighing in relief. She walked to the fridge across from her and opened it, grabbing a water bottle from the side door.

"Hey you," he heard a deep, velvet voice coming from behind her. She felt arms wrap around her waist. She leaned back into him, taking in his familiar scent. She smiled as he kissed her neck. "You giving me the cold shoulder?" he asked, laughing slightly.

She smiled, turning to face him but careful to stay in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her fingers playing with his golden locks. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

He chuckled lightly as he bent down to catch her pink lips with his. It was a sweet, short kiss but it was exactly what Clary needed. She had needed reassurance and this was it.

"How long are you staying for?" she whispered, resting her chin on his chest. She cursed her short height silently. Jace was a giant compared to her. She hated being seen like a child just because of how short she was.

"As long as you want me here," he said grinning.

"What about your friend?" she asked. She honestly didn't care where Lily went and how she got home. She wanted Jace to stay. She didn't want him to end up leaving her to take Lily home.

Jace shrugged. "Sebastian is growing pretty fond of her. Maybe he'll offer to take her home if you want me to stay."

She smiled sweetly. "I want you to stay."

"Then I'll ask a favor."

She loved how Jace spoiled her. She loved how Jace treated her right. He treated her as if she was a princess, every girl's fairytale. She got on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his.

"Oh, how cute," they heard from the other side of the room. The red head and the blonde both turned their heads to the voice. Lily.

She walked closer to the couple, but kept her distance. "So I take it that you're the girlfriend he's been talking about?"

Clary brought her arms to her side but didn't step away from Jace. He didn't drop his arms around her. She was going to stand her ground. "Well I would hope so," she said chuckling. Jace laughed.

Lily smiled. "You guys are cute together."

"Thanks," Clary watched her carefully. The way she eyed Jace from the corner of her eye is something Clary did not like at all. She had a feeling her and Lily weren't going to get along. "I'm Clary."

Lily nodded and smiled. "We'll have to talk sometime and get to know one another some more."

"Of course," Clary nodded once.

"I'll let you two be then." She began to turn around before stopping abruptly. "Hey Jace, do you think we could leave soon? I don't want to be late for dinner."

"I was actually going to see if Sebastian could take you home."

"Who?" Lily looked confused.

"The kid who was sitting next to me." He laughed to himself. "I do a terrible job at introducing people."

Clary smiled and nodded. Lily shrugged. "Sure, whatever works," And with that she left the room, rewriting a whole new plan in her head.

* * *

Lily looked down at her now illuminated phone in the darkness. She moved her thumb that was covering the big, white numbers. 7:24PM.

She turned to her right to everyone watching the movie. It was some action, comedy thing she wasn't even paying attention to. She was sitting next to nerdy Simon – she had finally learned everyone's names after an hour or so.

It was getting late now and she needed to go home. Instead of interrupting everyone's movie experience, she decided to text Jace and let him know she needed to leave. She stared at the golden boy, waiting for him to check his phone. She watched as the iPhone placed on his thigh lit up almost immediately. Before Jace could grab it, Clary did. She stared at the screen for a few seconds before whipping her hair around to stare at Lily.

Lily looked away quickly. Her phone lit up in a matter of a few seconds. She looked over to where Jace and Clary were sitting and now saw that Clary was relaxed, watching the movie and Jace was leaned over whispering something in Sebastian's ear. Good.

Sebastian had leaned forward looking over at Lily, smiled, and then leaned back to whisper something back to Jace. Jace nodded once and turned his head to face front in order to watch the movie.

Lily watched as Sebastian got up slowly and headed towards her. "Hey, you ready?" he whispered to her. She smiled and nodded.

She didn't want to make a huge exit and interrupt everyone's movie. She got up slowly, waved goodbye to whoever was looking and followed Sebastian out of the living room.

Walking down the hall towards the front door, Sebastian turned back at Lily and smiled. "What did you think about the movie?" he asked, rubbing his muscular hands together.

Lily shrugged. "Wasn't really paying attention, to be honest. Wasn't my style."

Sebastian nodded, reaching for the door and opening it. "Ready?" Lily nodded and followed him out the door.

* * *

Sebastian thumbed his fingers on the steering wheel to the music coming from the car stereo. It was silent for a while; no talking coming from either of the teenagers. Sebastian quickly glanced over at the attractive blonde next to him and shivered slightly. The last time he was this close to a beautiful girl was when he was with Isabelle…

He shook the memory out of his mind and focused on the road. "Turn left at the stop sign," Lily said, pointing to the sign ahead. Sebastian nodded and turned on his signal light and waited for the other cars to take their turn.

"So since you've moved back, does that mean you'll be starting at Alicante High soon?" Sebastian attempted to spark up some kind of conversation. It seemed like the flirtatious girl who had first came into his house had suddenly disappeared.

Lily turned to him and smiled. "Yeah, most likely next week." She turned back to the road. "My house is the red one with the black shutters."

Sebastian turned left unto another street that came to a dead end. He searched for the red one and finally spotted it in the corner of his eye. He turned slightly to the right unto a long, wavy driveway. He admired the big red house with the Victorian porch and black shutters on the large glass windows.

"Here we are," he said lowly. He put the car in park and sat quietly before Lily spoke up.

"Would you like to come in?" She asked, turning her body to face him. "No one's home."

"I thought you had to be home for dinner…" Sebastian said, suspiciously.

She shook her head. "They went out, I guess." She smiled, flirtatiously. "Come on, we'll have fun."

Sebastian stared at her for a moment, a bit puzzled at the idea. She stared back at him, alluring him with her eyes. "I promise, it'll be fun." She whispered.

He sighed, looking down and turned his keys, shutting the car off. He looked up at her and she was grinning. "Good choice."

_Sex and white lies,  
Handcuffs and alibis,  
She lays her halo on the pillow where she sleeps...  
Her heart beats, red wine,  
My toxic valentine._


	11. Chapter 11: With Me

**A/N:** Here's some major Clace. Don't forget to review!

xoxo

* * *

Clary opened her eyes slowly. A smile crept up on her face when she saw him. He was sleeping next to her, his face so peaceful and beautiful. She couldn't help but stare.

It was a Friday and Clary had tutoring in a few hours. She groaned internally. She just wanted to stay with Jace, was that so hard to ask for? She bit her lip, smiling. She slowly reached for her phone on her bedside table, and texted her mother.

_Hey mom, I'm not feeling very well today. Can we cancel tutoring today?_

She waited silently until her phone buzzed.

_That's fine. Do you want me to come down and check for a fever?_

Clary's eyes widened. If her mother found out that Jace had slept over – even though they hadn't done anything – she would flip out.

_No, it's fine. I'm going to go back to sleep. I'll check when I get up._

She didn't necessarily like lying to her mother, but she was going to get what she wanted and that was some time with Jace.

_Hope you feel better, xoxo._

Clary placed her phone back on her bedside table and turned back to Jace. He was opening his golden eyes slowly. His chest was bare and Clary didn't mind. She loved tracing her finger on his tattoo and making him shiver at her touch.

Jace raised his hand to cover hers. He was smiling at her. "Good morning," he whispered.

She smiled back. "'Morning,"

Jace lifted his hand that was covering her hand, and brought it to her face. He brushed away a strand of hair in her face.

"Jace,"

"Mmm?"

"Stay with me,"

"I'm not going anywhere," he said, smiling.

She snaked her arms around Jace's waist, smiling. She rested her head on his bare chest as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"Does your mom work today?"

"She should be leaving soon," Clary mumbled. She could feel his finger trace little circles along her back. It relaxed her slightly.

A sudden vibrating sound came from the other side of the bed, and startled Clary. Jace reached to his side and grabbed his cellphone. He stared at the screen for a minute before sighing and putting the phone to his right ear.

"Hey, shouldn't you be in class?" he mumbled into the phone. Clary couldn't make out whom it was. She stared at Jace's face as it changed from sleepiness to seriousness.

"No, it's cool. I'll be there in ten minutes." And with that, he hung up the phone. Clary stared at him patiently. He looked at her and sighed.

"What?" she asked.

"I got to take Lily to school," he said, sitting up slowly. Clary moved off of him and sat up, crossing her arms across her small chest.

"What do you mean 'you got to'?"

"Well, I kind of told her if she needed anything to let me know." He realized the hint of jealousy in Clary's voice and smiled. He reached for her, pulling her closer to him until she was sitting in his lap. Clary tried her best to keep a serious face.

"Am I sensing a bit of jealousy, Fray?"

She rolled her eyes mockingly and ignored him. She turned to the right, avoiding his face. He chuckled slightly and pulled her closer to him. He grabbed her face with his hand and kissed her lightly. It was all she needed.

He pulled away from her, his face serious as it was before. "Clary?"

Clary cocked her head to the side. "Jace,"

"I love you," he whispered.

Clary froze. Her heart stopped and everything was silent. She couldn't help but stare. It was quiet for a few seconds before Jace spoke again. "I just ruined it didn't I? It was too early right?" He sighed. "I knew I should have waited."

Before he could say anything else, Clary closed the space between them by wrapping her arms around his neck. She smiled before her lips touched his in an innocent kiss. Jace wrapped his arms around Clary's small back and pulled her closer. The innocent kiss turned to a passionate, fiery kiss in seconds. Jace's hands roamed under Clary's shirt, allowing contact with her skin. He shivered slightly at the untouched territory.

Him and Clary hadn't done much when it came to their physical relationship. He didn't want to pressure her into anything she didn't want to do. Unlike his other relationships, he wanted to take it slow with her. Clary wasn't just any girl. She was _the _girl.

Another vibration stopped the couple from going any further. Jace broke away, realizing it was his phone. He reached for it and read the text message from Lily. He sighed. "I got to go,"

It was silent as Jace got up from her bed and reached for his shirt on her dresser. She watched as her back muscles moved as he slipped on his t-shirt. He ran his fingers through his hair a few times before making his way back to her. "Come with me," he said.

Clary's face brightened slightly. She wanted to spend more time with Jace, and plus, she didn't necessarily trust that Lily girl. "Yeah?"

Jace nodded smiling. "Yeah, we can make a day out of it. We can go out to eat, go to the park," He picked her up off the bed. Her legs instantly wrapped around his waist. "You know, spend time together."

She grinned. "Okay,"

* * *

Lily tapped her foot lightly as she looked out her window. She really should have got a ride from Sebastian this morning when he left. She smirked to herself. Of course he had spent the night. They all do. They can't resist themselves.

But because of this decision, she was late for her first day of school. This would happen to her. Since both her parents were at work and her housekeeper, Rosa, didn't own a vehicle, Lily had no choice but to call Jace. She had no one else.

_I really need to start making friends._

Finally, Lily spotted the familiar black truck driving up her driveway. She sighed; relieved she wouldn't miss too much in school. Despite her extracurricular activities, Lily was a good student. She was going to get into a good college, or her father would disown her.

Lily opened the front door and head to the truck. As she made her way to the vehicle, she saw that the passenger seat was occupied. By Clary.

Her smile disappeared quickly. This wasn't apart of her plan at all. She was going to lure Jace, flirt with him, reminisce, but now, she couldn't with his girlfriend in the car.

She made her way to the back door and opened it reluctantly. She got in, faking a smile. "Hey!"

Jace smiled at her but Clary didn't say anything. Lily felt as though she had the upper hand. Obviously Clary still wasn't comfortable with her around yet. Lily smirked.

"Thanks for giving me a ride. It figures that on my first day, I would sleep in and miss the bus." She said.

"It's no problem," Jace said. "I was up already."

"Aren't you going to school?" she asked.

"No," he said, glancing over at Clary. He smiled at her. "I'm spending the day with Clary."

Lily's face changed from cockiness to disappointment. "So you guys are just ditching school?" She scoffed. "Lucky,"

"Well Clary has a tutor, so she technically not ditching school. I am." Jace explained as he stopped at a stop sign.

_Clary is in tutoring, huh? I wonder why…_

"That's pretty school. Do you normally get tutored? Like are you homeschooled or something?" Lily asked Clary.

Lily could imagine Clary rolling her eyes at her nosiness, but Lily didn't care.

"Um, well, it's sort of temporary. I'll be back at school soon." Clary said, looking out the window. Lily watched as Jace grabbed Clary's hand from her lap. He smiled encouragingly at her.

Lily was obviously missing something, but decided not to push the subject. She could get the story from someone else, or when she had Jace for their one-on-one time. The truck came to a stop and Jace put the vehicle in park.

"Here we are," Jace said, smiling at Lily. "Hopefully you get some good teachers."

Lily smiled. "Yeah, hopefully." She opened the door and jumped out. She peeked back inside, smiling. "Thanks for the ride, Jacey." Before he could respond, she closed the door shut and made her way towards the school.

Clary stared out the window at Lily as she walked towards the school. She really did not like this girl. She turned to Jace, dumbfounded.

"Jacey?" She asked. "Really?"

Jace chuckled lightly. "She used to call me that when we were ten. It's not a big deal, babe."

Clary rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. She stared out at the street and didn't say anything.

Jace laughed to himself, visibly amused at Clary's newfound jealousy. "Where to?"

Clary shrugged. "Anywhere,"

Jace put the truck in drive and drove out of the school parking lot. "How about we go get something to eat, yeah?"

Clary nodded but continued to stare out the window. The rest of the car ride was pretty quiet. Jace didn't say much so neither did Clary. Finally, Jace pulled up into a diner parking lot. Clary vaguely remembered the restaurant. They went here a lot before the accident.

Jace got out of the car and raced over to Clary's side in order to open her door. Clary grinned as she jumped out of the fairly large truck. "What a gentlemen," she said, looking over at him. He smiled. "Don't make fun,"

Once inside the restaurant, the hostess sat them down at a secluded booth in the corner. The diner was pretty quiet. Most of the customers were at the counter eating by themselves. Clary looked around her silently. The pale yellow color on the walls brightened the room as the sun hit the walls. There was an overflow of plants in the opposite corner of them and most were dying. She smiled. This place had character.

"You remember this place?" Jace asked, drawing her attention away from her thoughts. He was holding a menu in his hands, looking at her.

She smiled. "Yeah, sort of. It's pretty cute."

"We came here a lot in the summer." Jace commented.

The grey-haired waitress then came to take their order. Unsure of what was good, Clary picked the first entrée that her eyes landed on. Jace seemed to have known exactly what he wanted. Of course, he did. They had been here a thousand times before, Clary just didn't remember.

Clary played with the empty straw cover. Jace was looking out the window next to them.

"Jace?"

He looked over at her, his eyebrows perked up. "Yes?"

"What's the deal with you and Lily?"

Jace scoffed. "Clary, you don't have anything to worry about, I promise."

"No, no, no," she said quickly. "It's not that. I'm just wondering what's your backstory?"

"Oh," Jace said. "It's really nothing –"

"Jace,"

He sighed and nodded. "We kind of grew up together. Our parents were pretty close, that is until mine died. We went to the same schools, same parks, it was like we were siblings. Then I moved in with my grandma and that's when I met you and Sebastian. I saw her every now and then until she moved. Then we completely lost contact until recently, I guess."

Clary could feel that Jace wasn't telling her everything, but she didn't say anything else about the subject. Clary was missing something. She decided to let it rest though.

Jace could feel the tension in the air. He knew Clary was upset, but there was really nothing he could do to fix it. For God's sake, he told her he loved her this morning and she didn't say anything. Shouldn't he be the one that was upset?

After the two finished their meal in silence and Jace paid the bill, they made their way back to his truck. They weren't far from Clary's house, maybe a five-minute drive. He revved the engine to life.

There was nothing but silence again. Jace had to say something. He couldn't stand it anymore. "Clary, why are you mad?"

"I'm not mad,"

"Yes you are. I can always tell when you're mad, you know that." He said.

She folded her arms across her chest. "It's nothing,"

"Stop lying,"

Clary scoffed loudly. "I just don't like Lily, that's all."

"Why?"

"I have my reasons,"

"And I'm asking what are they?"

"I just feel like she has another agenda, that's all."

Jace turned left unto Clary's street. "And what you mean is?"

"I have a feeling she wants you, Jace."

Jace finally turned into Clary's driveway and turned the keys, shutting off the engine. It was completely quiet before Jace spoke. "Clary, I meant what I said when I said you have nothing to worry about." He turned to face her. "And I mean what I said this morning too. I do love you, Clary." He smiled shyly. "It's going to take a lot more than a childhood friend for that to change."

She studied him for a minute before responding. "I know, I'm just being the jealous girlfriend but I can't help it. I mean, she's beautiful and- "

"You're beautiful," Jace interrupted.

Clary stopped and smiled. She reached for his face and kissed his smooth lips. She pulled back just a little and smiled. "I love you too,"

_I want you to know, with everything I won't let this go._

_These words are my heart and soul._

_I'll hold on to this moment, you know,_

_As I bleed my heart out to show,_

_And I won't let go._


End file.
